I started this post off Sunday as a Sunday Reading entry, and then life decided to get in the way again. So here we are on Tuesday with much more to talk about.
At the macro scale, I found something worth your time to read and digest–The rise of Archaeologists Anonymous. TL;DR version: Wokeism has driven real archeology underground because The Narrative is more important than science.
It seems Ukraine is a little tired of having its electrical grid attacked and has decided to send a message to Russia on the subject. I’m not super-knowledgeable about drone warfare; that’s something that came about long after my time. But it seems to me that it’s likely that the attack was carried out from within the borders of Russia. The Ukrainians must enjoy old WWII movies. I hope they also have some knowledge of game theory.
Nearer to home, just in case you’ve been hiding in your underground bunker out of touch for a few days, it seems someone decided to use a couple of electrical substations in Moore County, NC for target practice. Our esteemed governor has said this was a “criminal act” as if there is a way to shoot up a substation that isn’t criminal. Mildly less brain-dead is this article, which breathlessly informs us of the impact on all those poor people who just wanted to live their lives. Of course, all those affected seem to be from the more developed/liberal areas of the county. Folks out in the back of beyond, well, who cares about them, right?
Law enforcement, ever on the alert, has checked out the usual suspects and found them wanting in the guilt department, at least so far.
To be more serious, video accompanying this article shows Duke Energy workers who appear to be swapping out at least one large transformer. I’ve seen that two substations were hit, but not how many transformers. Word is that Duke has the equipment on hand to repair/replace all the damaged components, but some of it may have to be brought in from a distance.
While we don’t know a lot of reliable information about the situation, this is something that has happened before in the US. Those who cut some fiber optic cables and shot up the Metcalf, CA substation were never caught. Could someone be making practice runs?
So far there has been much theorizing about this attack, far more than is merited by the amount of publically available information, but I’ll happily jump into the pool anyway. Here, hold my beer. 🙂 Unless a drunk redneck with a deer rifle happens to conveniently show up in a local watering hole running his mouth, I fully expect that no one will be arrested for this and that it will be laid at the feet of some nebulous group of armed domestic right-wing terrorists. Then it will be used to justify more crackdowns on our civil liberties, including firearms rights.
The whole thing is curious. As best I can tell, the shooter(s) knew their targets and what to hit. Of course, that sort of information is plastered all over the Intertubz and can be found using your favorite search engine. Sorry, no link to a search, because I figure that anyone who searches the phrase “how to shoot up an electrical substation” anytime in the next few months will get a swift visit from some humorless FBI types. I have other ways to occupy my time that are less hazardous to my continued personal freedom of movement.
The timing, occurring when a drag event was being put on in the area, is also suspect, although it could have been done in order to throw investigators off the trail.
Needless to say, this will be interesting to watch play out.
In the very local area, gas prices have dropped again to as low as $3/gallon. Diesel truck owners are still getting hit with $5+/gallon. I did see one station that had run out of everything except premium.
On yet another trip to the grocery store, I noted that this particular Food Lion was as well stocked as any grocery store pre-Wuflu. However, with the prices, you couldn’t mistake the time as pre-Wuflu. The veggies were of good quality and very well stocked. Prices were nothing near what I’ve heard from Southerprepper1’s Boots on the Ground reports, although they were still far higher than before the world decided to lose its collective mind. I really have to wonder if some places are taking advantage by using Wuflu, war or inflation as a cover for simple greed.
We’re seeing a lot more of the grandkids. I spent yesterday afternoon minding them while Daughter worked from home. I think she got a demonstration during the morning that she wasn’t going to be able to deal with them at all and still actually work. Mrs. Freeholder is over there for the entire day while I do some things around the homeplace.
Speaking of which, break time is over. Back at it. Out here.
I wondered if that outage affected you, apparently not. But it’s nice to ready for this stuff.
Some people just don’t learn from this experience, I bet. They think it will never happen again, or ‘someone will help us, right?’ I know some people who have gone through power failures and storms and still seem to be oblivious.
Prices here are usual highs, stock is pretty good. No cauliflower at one supermarket, the stock person said it rained too much in California, then got too cold. I didn’t think those things happened much out there. Sounds unlikely to me.
I have battery backups on two small freezers. I’ve received critical comments along the lines of “HOW much did that cost?” and “The power almost never goes out.” Last night’s outage was ninety minutes; that would explain my fuzzy memory of breathing issues while asleep. I gotta get a battery for the CPAP…
Oddly, two of four digital clocks were 20 minutes fast afterwards, and one has a built-in battery backup.