Meter Choice By Amanda Mitchell March 18, 2014
On March 5th, Ketchikan Public Utilities came to our house to install a digital ‘smart’ meter on our home. We have been very vocal about not wanting one and you can even reference my online Sitnews letter Technology. The gentleman stated his name was Mark Johnson and we didn’t get the name of the other KPU employee. I do have to give them credit that they have not installed a meter or they switched it back when we caught them in the act, but Mr. Johnson threatened us saying they would disconnect our power in the future if we did not switch over. This is in our Ketchikan and not some foreign country! WE REFUSE TO ACCEPT A DIGITAL SMART METER. KPU YOU ARE NOT WELCOME ON OUR PROPERTY TO SWITCH OUR METER. Since starting the battle for cleaner water, I will say that I have heard so many stories. I have been asked to write on different topics and fight different issues. I heard a couple of times that several of you believe you are being overcharged since the switch to one of these new meters. This is not unusual and these meters are unaccountable. I would suggest that you do your own research outside of our KPU. They have no reason to tell you of the negative side to their technology and as we have seen they like to down play the concerns in the community. I did contact our City Council regarding this issue and not one of them (again) contacted me back. There are laws being established across the country for this issue so people can keep their rights to say no to the meters. Who would have guessed it would have gotten to the point that we have to ask for permission to keep our rights, especially here in Alaska or Ketchikan? This is what I expect our City Council Members to do: Make sure that we are able to keep our rights in the issues that are plaguing our City. If you want a smart meter then good for you, but I should be able to say I don’t want one without penalty or harassment. I will be pursuing this issue and plan to setup a screening for Take Back Your Power and I will order the DVD’s to be available for those that want to watch it. If there are any volunteers that want to help out with putting together this event, please make sure to contact me. We have another online petition for this issue (link below). It will generate a letter to our City Council and Borough Assembly members. Yes, this is an informal petition for them to act in creating an ordinance to protect our rights. If they fail to listen, we can start a formal petition to put this on the ballot. Thank you for your time reading this letter, for researching these issues for yourself and for your support. I will do my best to help out where I can, but I am only one person and you really are an important part of making a change in our community. This is our Ketchikan. It is time to stand up tall in the fight to keep our rights and I need your help. Talk with you soon! Sincerely, Amanda Mitchell Like us on Facebook
About: Received March 18, 2014 - Published March 18, 2014 Related Viewpoint:
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