2008 is coming to a dramatic close. A worldwide financial meltdown has so far been narrowly averted, an historic election gives America our first African American president, the American automobile industry faces bankruptcy, and democracy has taken root in Iraq as the Iraqi Parliament came to agreement on the Status of Forces Agreement that will provide a schedule for the U.S. troops to come home.
On top of all that, a half a million homes in New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont, and Massachusetts lost power when tons of ice from a deluge of freezing rain snapped branches and trees, and brought down power lines. Utility crews are still working to bring power back in some areas, and many homes will be without power through Christmas.
We were fortunate to have electricity restored late Wednesday afternoon. In the meantime we spent cold nights in a dark house with the fireplace providing minimal warmth. We managed to find a hotel room for one night, we visited relatives in Connecticut for a couple of days, but the outlook improved dramatically when a friend offered me the use of his portable generator which I connected up to the furnace. Having heat and hot water improved our spirits mightily.
Thirty-five years ago when an ice storm hit central Connecticut it was my sister and her two boys who came to stay with me in my warm apartment for a couple of days. This year our roles were reversed. I spent two days with her and her husband in Connecticut in their warm house. I would have thought that thirty-five years after the ice storm of '73, power companies in the northeast might have made some progress in mitigating the effects of freezing rain on the power grid. It hasn't happened. If anything the power grid has proven to be more vulnerable than ever.
In any event, Libertarian Leanings is back.
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