Electric company SJW snowflakes are trying to shame me

[Saluda]

I think the OP said his were emails.

Correct, but you quoted me.

[Joe T.]

We get an email from West Star (Local Kansas Electric Company) every week detailing energy usage. I never bother to open them. I suggest you don't bother either.

Joe T.

[hypurone]

I got this email from ComEd informing me that I use more energy than my neighbors and I should be ashamed of myself. Notice they bold the word "You".

Environmentalist wackos are everywhere, it's scary.

I get these. The thing is, I have every "efficient" upgrade under the sun done to my house outside of going solar. Windows, attic heat barrier, replaced heating/AC with 97% efficient units, HE washer/dryer, gas insert in fireplace blah blah blah... And somehow, I am still using xx amount more than my neighbors! Horsesh1t! I believe mine (and possibly yours and others) comes down to a ridiculously low "baseline" set for my house. Where they come up with this sh1t I have no idea. But even when my wife didn't work from home and we were gone 12 hours a day, I still got these notices!

[Chupaca]

I get them all the time both by mail and e-mail. Thing is I may have 15 people staying with me so on the basis of ownership (2) yeah..!! I am blowing the neighbor away. I also know most of my neighbors are retired couples who turn in at 5:30 pm Why do they care.. I pay the bill.....

[ofdave]

He's in Illinois: not California or Colorado.

right you are,
didn't see that at first
so they don't smoke hippie lettuce in IL I guess

[johnsimion]

A "snowflake" is someone who shows excessive sensitivity to something. ComEd sent what appears to be factual information and it's generated by a computer. The extreme reaction to the fact that ComEd's computer put the word "You" was put in bold print suggests that it's not really ComEd that's the "snowflake" here. I get the same kind of notifications. I take a look to see if there's anything out of the ordinary and if not, I throw them away. Case closed.

[BoilerAnimal]

We get these notices from Ameren Illinois and I like getting info that lets us know where we stand in comparison to other similar size households. They don't take into account the number of residents at a specific address, rather it is a comparison of similar homes in your area.

https://amerenillinoissavings.com is their website that offers info that can be quite useful, such as ways to reduce energy usage, rebates, special offers etc, if you are so inclined. I'm sure that ComEd offers something very similar.

I think you might be a little too sensitive regarding this matter.

[MisterP]

People shout “environmental paranoia” when an electric utility cautions them about their bill, and I’m sure there is some truth to that. But a much bigger issue is the deteriorating situation of the US power grid. It was built many years ago in most areas, and upgrades are few and far between. Utility companies everywhere are on a push to encourage users to reduce consumption and prevent overloads.

A good example is this year’s cold (for us) winter here in south FL. Most homes are heated by electric strip heaters in the air handlers, so think of everyone heating their homes with big electric toasters. It’s inefficient, expensive, and creates a big load on the grid. We are seeing brownouts and blackouts around the state, and the utilities are even connecting to customers through the TV stations, asking customers to reduce power when they can. It’s a real problem everywhere and we should get used to seeing prodding from our utility about our power consumption.

[blacklightning]

Looks to me like you are winning!

[PrairieSpyder]

I got this email from ComEd informing me that I use more energy than my neighbors and I should be ashamed of myself. Notice they bold the word "You".

Environmentalist wackos are everywhere, it's scary.

Energy shaming!! Can you imagine a business shaming their customers for buying their products??

I wonder what the public utility commission allows for their rate of return? If rate payers used less, would the rates go up? Ask to see what types of things they "expense" so they can show a lower return.

No, but I leave lights on and run the air and heat year round. I do that because I have pets. My place is situated under trees and my neighbors porch so my place is dark day and night. My pets are there 24/7 and I don't want them sitting in a dark, cold dungeon. They have emotions so such an environment is not good for them. When the lights are all off, it gets to them and they start crying.

I am not against to saving energy. What I resent is their approach. They act like i have no right to use energy and I am a horrible person for doing so. If they instead say, "We see you use more energy than your neighbors, so we would like to offer you some assistants on how to lower your usage". Then I would listen. With the way they act, it makes me defiant and more likely to do more of what they don't like.

It's probably real, but I would compare the graphs to others received by your neighbors. Maybe they send the same thing to everyone to make them feel like they should reduce energy use.

[Bob Denman]

It's the Russians...

[Navvet]

I got this email from ComEd informing me that I use more energy than my neighbors and I should be ashamed of myself. Notice they bold the word "You".

Environmentalist wackos are everywhere, it's scary.

I don't know, looks pretty energy efficient to me ....

Last month I used 3223 Kwh .....

I wonder what your power company would say to me ????

[Bob Denman]

I don't know, looks pretty energy efficient to me ....

Last month I used 3223 Kwh .....

I wonder what your power company would say to me ????

[GOZFST]

My "bill" last month was a $92 credit. I love those solar panels here in AZ.

[Bob Denman]

[pitzerwm]

Getting your usage stats each month is useful, being told that you are a bad person because of your usage which you pay for is BS. If my utility sent me one of those, me and the president of the utility would be having a little chat, which he wouldn't be forgetting for a long time.

And you are right when you conserve and use less, soon they are complaining to the state commission for a rate hike.

[Rogue Hawk]

Kudos for taking care of your pets so well. I think you're reading more into that utility bill message than is there.

Well, extremism is the new normal, so I watch for it. If you look at the subtleties you can see what they mean. First of all, why do they see it as necessary to point this out? My energy needs are different from even my closes neighbors. So the comparisons are apples vs. oranges. Second, referring to someone as 'You" is often used just before a disparaging accusation. And notice the "You" is in bold. Like who will miss it if it was in normal font? These things are auto generated, they could have referred to me by name.

Youuuuuuuu..........

[UtahPete]

Well, extremism is the new normal, so I watch for it. If you look at the subtleties you can see what they mean. First of all, why do they see it as necessary to point this out? My energy needs are different from even my closes neighbors. So the comparisons are apples vs. oranges. Second, referring to someone as 'You" is often used just before a disparaging accusation. And notice the "You" is in bold. Like who will miss it if it was in normal font? These things are auto generated, they could have referred to me by name.

Your feelings about this are valid enough. It's just not the only way to perceive it.

[Bob Denman]

Nice scene from "KTB".

[Rogue Hawk]

Nice scene from "KTB".

I'm Conan the Electrician

[RinconRyder]

My "bill" last month was a $92 credit. I love those solar panels here in AZ.

I agree. Over the past three years I have paid only the $20/month "connect" fee to SRP. Not one cent in electric consumption.