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Amen, Superbelt - you hit the nail on the head.
The simple fact is that with the advent of deregulation, it has been more profitable for private companies to increase output (to meet a massively increased demand) without similiarly providing for upgrades of the substructure.
The most stark example of this would be the 2001 energy crisis in California. Companies would try to route several times the maximum recommended kilowatts along grid lines - rolling blackouts being the obvious result.
One of the main reasons behind this lack of investment is the fact that an assortment of companies provide energy in this nation (and Canada) - and none want to invest in infrastructure as, in many cases, such investment would also aid others.
This is why nationalized (although not necessarily government controlled) utilities could be more efficient and safe. I say safe, because of the terrorist applications that could obviously be found in exploiting a system such as we have.
One fourth of the United States' electricity should not be able to be taken down in a matter of seconds.
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The tragedy of life is what dies inside a man while he lives.
-- Albert Schweitzer
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