Even though California’s electricity infrastructure is so outdated and third-world the state has been suffering blackouts going back for more than a decade, still a number of cities in the Luddite State are banning or discouraging natural gas hookups in new homes.
The far-left USA Today reports that there are “13 cities and one county in California that have enacted new zoning codes encouraging or requiring all-electric new construction.”
And the entire policy is based on the hoax science surrounding Climate Change.
In other words, Hey, sorry Californians, while we know our backwards green policies have ensured we can’t keep your electricity on, and that those stupid policies mean your electricity rates are more expensive than anywhere else, we’re still going to outlaw your access to natural gas.
During the nine years I lived in Los Angeles, and not just in Los Angeles but in the San Gabriel Valley where it gets much hotter than along the coast, there were plenty of winter nights where we had to utilize our natural gas heat. And when that heater conked out for a few days, the only back-up we had was the gas stove. Sure, we probably would have survived without heat, but it would have made for some miserable nights.
Imagine what it could mean to those in Northern California if natural gas is outlawed and there’s no electric power in winter due to yet another round of blackouts?
In 2011, after we moved back to our mountain home in North Carolina, one of the first things we did was take advantage of the new natural gas lines. The replacement furnace (that included central air conditioning) cost $9,000, but paid for itself in five years. We did not have electric heat before, we had oil heat, and we still cannot believe how much cheaper natural gas is – we’re talking at least $2,000 a year.
Next year, we plan to switch our water heater, clothes dryer, and stove to gas.
I do have a neighbor who switched to natural gas from electric heat, and they tell me they are also saving a fortune every year.
And not only is natural gas significantly cheaper and more efficient, not only is it a crucial back-up if you lose your electricity (your furnace may not run without electricity, but your stove can still generate heat and we have a natural gas fireplace that works wonders), but it’s just a better form of heating your home, more comfortable. Natural gas heats up faster, almost immediately, and forced air heats more evenly.
What’s more, who doesn’t love cooking on a gas stove? We can’t wait to switch out our electric stove for gas. That gas stove is one thing we still miss about Los Angeles.
Even if you ignore the massive cost savings and efficiency, how could anyone stand to live with a government so fascist your God-given right to choose your energy source is not just stripped from you, but forces you into a much more expensive form of energy based only on the latest left-wing environmental hoax.
This, to me, is intolerable, and if California cities are willing to micromanage your energy choices based on junk science, you have to ask yourself what’s next.
I felt my freedom being smothered in California when a five cent fine was instituted for using plastic grocery bags. How much tyranny are the people of California going to allow? How much more failure?
It’s hard to feel sorry for a population that continues to vote in overwhelming numbers against their own interests and liberty.
Follow John Nolte on Twitter @NolteNC. Follow his Facebook Page here.