Power outages in London and parts of Britain (FOX NEWS)

[Keithpotkin]

no link yet.

reported that the subways were effected.

ok..break out the tinfoil guys.

edit: here is a link

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/3189755.stm

[Jacobin]

1. I'll wait til its reported by someone other than Faux......

[Keithpotkin]

2. on CNN now

.

[Keithpotkin]

3. they are saying

60% of subways out.

cause is "failure from national power grid".

[meegbear]

4. Look for Tony Blair to whore for NWAR

[Keithpotkin]

5. 10 million affected.

pssssh.

[Chico Man]

6. The oil and energy gods have once again spoken

Evil, evil beings.

[demnan]

7. I told you guys it was hackers!

[liberalnurse]

27. It is really, really suspicious.....

Major power blackouts in respective major cities of the only 2 countries who attacked Iraq.

Oh Boy..... This must be the practice run......

[GreenArrow]

30. three countries altogether

Ukraine had a major blackout last week.

[Keithpotkin]

33. as did georgia...

:tinfoilhat:

[KittyWampus]

31. Did Stocks Rise On Any Co.s Making Emergency Power Equipement

A couple of hours before the blackout?

[WillyT]

8. Didn't Blair Testify Before The Hutton Committee Today ???

Do the Brits throw major distraction events for the news like we do here?

:evilgrin::tinfoilhat::evilgrin:

[NNN0LHI]

9. Wonder if the same UK company that owns our power grids, own theirs?

http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/story.jsp?story=434095

British utility owns failed power grid

By Michael Harrison, Business Editor
16 August 2003

The New York power grid, which collapsed, plunging millions of Americans into darkness, is owned by the British utility National Grid Transco

more

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

32. There is a Brit Company with a controlling interest in Mohawk.

[bpilgrim]

10. did blair already testify?

i guess this will knock it off the front page though :shrug:

peace

[FlashHarry]

11. "Sue Gill from EDF Energy???'

Isn't EDF the French national power company? I seem to remember writing checks to them when I lived over there.

[Kbowe]

12. My guess is that Spain will be next

the only reason it won't hit Pakistan is that the perpertrators need the energy to continue their work. Look out Qatar!

[yellowcanine]

13. Harry Potter strikes again.

Maybe Harry Potter and his friends were performing unauthorized magic?

[bbernardini]

14. "Best Democracy Money Can Buy" makes this very clear

In the first few chapters, I believe. After reading it, I'm not surprised at all.

[smirkymonkey]

15. Does anyone think this is just a coincidence??

I don't. It's kind of scary. What do you think is going on?

[Chico Man]

16. The oil gods are flexing their muscles

I think this is only the beginning of the events the right wing and oil conglomerates are going to pull in order to keep world dominance past 2004.

[NNN0LHI]

17. I think it is a very hot summer, elecrical needs have increased,

...the power grids are old and being overloaded and they can't take the burden. Then again maybe its Osama flicking a switch in his cave somewhere causing it? :-)

Don

[KamaAina]

19. 62 degrees F and light rain in London today

http://weather.yahoo.com/forecast/UKXX0085_f.html

The heat wave broke a week or two ago. One would think a demand-realted outage would have struck then, no?

:tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat:

[Chico Man]

22. Maybe all the back ordered AC units came in today

:tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat:
:tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat:

[Junkdrawer]

24. Or Blair may have wanted his testimony off the front page....

:tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat:
:tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat:
:tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat:
:tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat:
:tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat:
:tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat: :tinfoilhat:

[qanda]

18. Did anyone come out and say this yet,

"We don't know what caused it, but we know it wasn't terrorism."

[Chico Man]

23. Of course its not terrorism

Duh get with the program. :eyes:

[dmr]

43. pbl is with the program and was being sarcastic

because this is what the Bush* White House told us almost immediately during our blackout.

[Ouabache]

20. Proof of Concept

Why does the phrase 'proof of concept' pop into my mind ?

I dunno.

[DoYouEverWonder]

21. Well at least they didn't

blow up another building in order to distract from the reports about Tony's testimony today.

These kinds of black outs, at just the right time, do have the scent of Rove all over them it seems. They destract the public from damaging news, they creat an excuse for the energy companies to rape us even more, and they test our response to emergencies. What a great idea?

[Gingersnap]

26. an idea borrowed from our friends

the dictators of Latin American republics. When I lived in Mexico and Guatemala, the power routinely went out during elections--to the point that everyone I knew regardless of political bent all said it was the government. Once, I saw Guatemala's current President get aasked what was clearly an unauthorized question during a press conference and oops, the station went off air. People told me that this was common (and all stations are owned by a family member of someone high in government).

I don't know, I really don't think that these events are just restricted to the realm of Latin American magic-realism anymore, someone here has been studying the dirty playbooks. :scared: :tinfoilhat:

[catzies]

35. We,, sure! They're Republicans, after all...

...BANANA Republicans. :P

I love Ted Rall drawing George W. as the tinpot dictator complete with epaulets.

[DoYouEverWonder]

25. Power's back on

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/3189755.stm

Power cut causes chaos

A power cut has caused major disruption on rail and Tube services in London and the South East.

Power returned to the system at 1915 BST but the knock-on effects are still being felt by commuters struggling home.

Network Rail says between 500 and 1,000 trains have been affected by the power cut, thought to have been caused by a problem with the National Grid.

<snip>

No trains are running in south London, the area which has been hardest hit, and Transport for London says 60% of the Tube network has been affected.

Gee Tony, didn't you get lucky today? Just another one of those coincidences, I suppose?

[dbt]

28. Geez, don't the British get WARNED about power cuts?

Back in the 70s, it seemed that advance notice was given (or did I just make that up because I was having such fun back then?)

:shrug:
dbt

[robbedvoter]

29. From Palast piece (Power Outage traced to dim bulb in the WH):

> The power elite first moved on England because they knew
> Americans wouldn't swallow the deregulation snake oil
> easily. The USA had gotten used to cheap power available at
> snip
> And the Pataki-Bush Axis of Weasels permitted something that
> must have former New York governor Roosevelt spinning in his
> wheelchair in Heaven: They allowed a foreign company, the
> notoriously incompetent National Grid of England, to buy up
> NiMo, get rid of 800 workers and pocket most of their wages
> - producing a bonus for NiMo stockholders approaching $90
> million.
>

[molok555]

42. Gee, I wonder what the Economist will say?

Just last week they were blaming the US/Canada blackout on half-assed deregulation and praising the UK's full-assed approach. I'm sure they'll find some "over regulation" to blame for this...

[neverforget]

34. I'm sure Spencer Abraham will come out and say this obviously

means that British energy rates need to be raised. :eyes:

[Pert_UK]

36. Damn! I'm glad I wasn't on the Underground........

Seriously, there's no aircon on the Tube and during Summer the temp gets so high that it would be against animal cruelty laws to take a dog on board, yet commuters have to put up with it!

I've commuted in London for years, often using the Tube. Most times I would have to wait for at least 2 to pass before there was enough space in a carriage to squeeze in. This isn't me being picky, this is when you literally have to force your way into a rigid mass of people who fill the carriage, grab a roof bar and pull yourself in far enough that the doors only JUST close on the back of your coat.

Imagine doing that in 30 degree heat, then the lights and power failing while you're in a tunnel....

Seriously, the London Underground is a claustrophobe's nightmare and any attack on it would be catastrophic.

I hope to God that it never happens.

P.

[DoYouEverWonder]

38. One of the reasons

why I moved out of NYC, when I finished school, was because I dreaded the idea of being caught on a train, in a tunnel, during a blackout. It's dark and creepy and all those rats, the size of cats, are running around down there. No thanks.

[scottxyz]

37. Tube sell-off blamed for blackout

Privatization strikes again! When are we going to learn?

Public utilities such as highways, police, firemen and energy should be run by the people - not by greedy private firms who care more about profits than about people.

Deregulation and privatization lead to underinvestment in infrastructure. This in turn can lead to market manipulation (Enron stealing $71 billion from California) or blackouts, like the ones Niagara Mokawk and FirstEnergy just caused in the Northeastern US, and EDF just caused in London.

Police departments, fire departments, highways, schools, energy, education and healthcare should belong to the PEOPLE and be run by the PEOPLE - not by private, for-profit firms.

Tube sell-off blamed for blackout
Thousands stranded as big power cut hits London
by Andrew Clark - Friday August 29, 2003 - The Guardian

The government's part-privatisation of the London Underground was blamed last night for exacerbating a massive power failure which blacked out large parts of the capital and brought the transport network to a halt.

http://politics.guardian.co.uk/publicservices/story/0,11032,1031530,00.html

[corarose]

39. I guess it just was a fluke right?

The right wing press in the USA played it as being just one of those things that happen and it was hackers that did it and they wanted to make a statement by putting out England's lights also.

Hey, they might be warning someone that they are going to put their lights out you know what I mean?

[Fovea]

40. Anything going on at HAARP?

Just wondering.

[dbt]

41. EXCELLENT question!!

It's even money that there is. I think I'll have a look around.

:evilgrin:
dbt