Necessities

I belong to a rural electric cooperative. Formed in the 1930s and 1940s, electric co-ops buy power from generating companies, then push it through locally maintained lines and connections. This allows those of us who appreciate being away from “the madding crowd” the ability to live less primitively. Somehow, over the past sixty or seventy years, the rural electric cooperatives have gotten a bit arrogant.

Every month I receive a glossy (small) magazine called “Cooperative Living.” The latest issue has been sitting on the kitchen table for the past few days, as I ponder why I’m finding it offensive. It has a hard stock over cover, with the headline, “Electricity is a Necessity….. Don’t let Congress make it a Luxury!” It would appear that there’s a “cap and trade” bill before Congress, which would levy fines on electricity generating facilities for carbon emissions. The co-op would have me believe this would make buying electricity from them too costly.

Two things come to mind. I think the co-op is getting me ready for yet another rise in my electric bill. That way I can pay for the “free” Cooperative Living magazine, which gives me great advice on how to conserve energy in my home, advice I read thirty years ago in Mother Earth News.

The second thought is this. When did artificial things become necessities? It’s only been about a hundred and thirty years since Edison lit the first light bulb. I’m sitting here at my computer, writing this, but I think I have a pretty clear idea of what necessities are.