In a chilling example of the type of control that those who extol “The Great Reset” would like to exert on peoples’ private lives, approximately 22,000 Colorado customers of Xcel Energy were unable to access their thermostats on Tuesday due to an “energy emergency.”
Customers affected were mainly in the Denver area, and were all reportedly members of the Colorado AC Rewards Program, which rewards consumers with “smart thermometers” — thermometers with energy rebates for participation in the program. The Denver area has been in the midst of a heatwave, prompting the “emergency” situation in the energy grid.
“It’s a voluntary program. Let’s remember that this is something that customers choose to be a part of based on the incentives,” said Emmett Romine, Xcel’s vice president of customer solutions and innovations.
“So, it helps everybody for people to participate in these programs. It is a bit uncomfortable for a short period of time, but it’s very, very helpful,” Romine explained.
Customers who signed up for the program received a $100 credit for enrolling and a $25 credit annually for allowing Xcel Energy to limit their access to their thermostat.
Arvada, Colorado, resident Tony Talarico described his experience with the thermostat lockout.
“I mean, it was 90 out, and it was right during the peak period,” Talarico told Denver7. “It was hot.”
When Talarico attempted to adjust the thermostat, he was greeted with a message saying that it was locked due to an “energy emergency.”
As consumers desperately attempted to adjust their thermostats, they were greeted with this message: “Temperature locked temporarily during energy emergency. Due to a rare energy emergency that may affect the local energy grid, your temperature slider has been changed from 8:00 pm – 8:00 pm because you enrolled in a Community Energy Savings Program.”
“Normally, when we see a message like that, we’re able to override it,” Talarico explained “In this case, we weren’t. So, our thermostat was locked in at 78 or 79.”
Talarico explained that, although he knew about the Colorado AC Rewards Program, he didn’t think that he’d signed away his ability to control his own thermostat.
“To me, an emergency means there is, you know, life, limb, or, you know, some other danger out there — some, you know, massive wildfires,” the Xcel consumer said. “Even if it’s a once-in-a-blue-moon situation, it just doesn’t sit right with us to not be able to control our own thermostat in our house.”
Apparently, Tuesday’s “energy emergency” was due to an unexpected power outage in Pueblo, Colorado, and the high demand for air conditioners due to the heatwave.
One Twitter user, handle “Derek,” complained that Xcel Energy had “tricked” consumers into the program: “Utility company tricked you/us. They hid a line of text in the fine print when you ‘signed up for subsidies’ giving @XcelEnergy coverage to force its customers to ‘opt out.’ Legal disclosures should NOT take advantage of people. Bad form @XcelEnergyCO.”
Consumers were locked out of their thermostat for several hours in the late August heat.
It’s exactly the type of control that proponents of “The Great Reset” dream about. For the small price of $25 per year, they can control the temperature in your own home. How soon until they wield complete control over your water usage? Your vehicle usage? Or what you eat for dinner?
