Power cut off in wide areas of Tokyo

I’ve always thought that Japan would probably be the number two country (behind the US) in trouble due to its energy import profile, even in spite of their extensive energy conservation measures and leadership. Remember, this is the country where many (energy-wise) highly-unrealistic visions of the future have been coming (at least for the later part of the 20th century).Can this be taken as evidence of an imminent decline?

http://tinyurl.com/kd378

TOKYO – A power outage hit wide swaths of Tokyo and nearby Chiba early Monday, halting train service in some areas, news reports said. It was not immediately clear what caused the power to be cut off.

At least two elevators stopped in central Tokyo with an unspecified number of people inside in the blackout, according to Tokyo fire official Keisuke Hayashi. He could not provide other details, saying officials were investigating the extent of the damage.

Media reports said that several trains services were halted. Japan was in the middle of a holiday, and the number of passengers during the morning rush hour was fewer than usual.

Public broadcaster NHK said that about 670,000 houses and other buildings were without power as of 8:15 a.m. local time.

Scarcity, the mother of invention

Yet another argument for human innovation and ingenuity. Ladies and gentlemen, look no further than Japan for a realistic perspective on human innovation for the last 30 years.
Moreover, if there have been wars over salt, why be so quick to rule one out over oil? Granted, there are far more NWO/secret-society complications with the onset of the current nation-state arrangement, but the pattern of the rape and pillaging of defenseless countries and their peoples continues, doesn’t it?

found at Energybulletin: http://energybulletin.net/19220.html

by Stephen L. Sass, NY Times via International Herald Tribune

In the wake of the closure of a BP oil field in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, oil prices shot up to $77 a barrel on Wednesday, and the chorus of doomsayers concerned about the dire consequences of our fossil fuel dependency has reached a crescendo. If oil hits $100 a barrel, the impact on the economy could be catastrophic, the handwringers warn. But while such a specter seems novel and terrifying, it is in fact familiar and useful.

Throughout history, shortages of vital resources have driven innovation, and energy has often starred in these technological dramas. The search for new sources of energy and new materials has frequently produced remarkable advances that no one could have imagined when the shortage first became evident.

More blackouts feared in California

Among many other reports of blackouts. Simple logic: blackouts are caused by energy demand from customers: industrial users, individual users, small businesses. The world does not have enough resources to allow every man, woman, and child the use of an air conditioner, every time, in 100+ degree weather, for the next 100 years. There’s simply not enough energy. In the next 20 years, don’t think the cost of the American lifestyle is gonna hit you? Think again.

http://tinyurl.com/pa468

By SAMANTHA YOUNG
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Scorching heat pushed California’s electricity supply to the brink Monday and threatened another round of blackouts as utility crews across the state struggled to restore power to tens of thousands of people left in the dark over the weekend.

Authorities warned that the eighth day of the heat wave could drive demand for electricity in California to an all-time high. Some businesses cut their power usage under a program that grants them lower rates if they agree to conserve during a crisis.

Meanwhile, utilities in the St. Louis area and New York City also labored to restore power to hundreds of thousands whose electricity was knocked out by storms and equipment failures.