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Data centers trigger voter backlash

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Re: Data centers trigger voter backlash

#171

Post by miiiiiike »

lelandfe wrote: post #164
miiiiiike wrote: post #154

It’s reaching the point of absurdity in my area. People are bringing “All data centers are flammable” signs to city meetings. A plot of land that’s already zoned for the heaviest of industrial activities, is across the street from a dump, 3 miles from an airport, 16 miles from a nuclear generating station, and in a region with good climate, and no water crunch is a pretty good place for a data center. Facts don’t mat…

Surely you have some measure of empathy for their position? I’m sure you certainly did in 08, as people lost their homes. I think it’s a topic that’s scary to many and this datacenter-to-be, or the local banker, just happens to be what they can easily protest.

2008 is apples vs oranges. The proposed data center site is across the street from the dump, just south of the airport. It’s zoned for heavy industrial use.

Literally anything that they could build there other than a data center would have a greater negative impact on the environment and a far less positive economic impact.

I could build a concrete crushing plant there.

Re: Data centers trigger voter backlash

#172

Post by anthonypasq »

amanaplanacanal wrote: post #57
arjie wrote: post #46

Honestly, voter backlash occurs for every reason. Build more homes? Backlash. Build more wind? Backlash. Build more solar? Backlash. Build more geothermal? Backlash. Build more urban subway? Backlash. Build high-speed rail? Backlash. What I can conclude from this is that what is right to do and what voter backlash occurs in is orthogonal. I think it is right that we build all these things and more nuclear power, and…

How does a new datacenter help the voters? All they see is that their electricity prices are going to go up.

why do we give a shit what voters think should happen on someone else's property again?

Re: Data centers trigger voter backlash

#173

Post by oulipo2 »

miiiiiike wrote: post #154

It’s reaching the point of absurdity in my area. People are bringing “All data centers are flammable” signs to city meetings. A plot of land that’s already zoned for the heaviest of industrial activities, is across the street from a dump, 3 miles from an airport, 16 miles from a nuclear generating station, and in a region with good climate, and no water crunch is a pretty good place for a data center. Facts don’t mat…

You realize that "golfs are even worse so why people complain" is not a serious argument?

Re: Data centers trigger voter backlash

#174

Post by spencerflem »

pesus wrote: post #169
lelandfe wrote: post #164

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Surely you have some measure of empathy for their position? I’m sure you certainly did in 08, as people lost their homes. I think it’s a topic that’s scary to many and this datacenter-to-be, or the local banker, just happens to be what they can easily protest.

[flagged]

Yeah it’s freaky. I work in tech too, I know I’m a villain lol

Re: Data centers trigger voter backlash

#175

Post by miiiiiike »

pesus wrote: post #169
lelandfe wrote: post #164

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Surely you have some measure of empathy for their position? I’m sure you certainly did in 08, as people lost their homes. I think it’s a topic that’s scary to many and this datacenter-to-be, or the local banker, just happens to be what they can easily protest.

[flagged]

Is that all you have? Calling people sociopaths?

No, I feel a great deal of empathy for and solidarity with my neighbors. Enough that I’ll argue for acting in our self-interest even if it’s unpopular.

And what do you do when your neighbors are being mislead? When their fears, anxieties, and hardships are being exploited by demagogues attempting to consolidate their power by whipping them up into an unthinking emotional frenzy?

For this region, for this site, the property tax boon from a data center would far outweigh any negative impacts and any other industrial activity would be more harmful to the environment and less beneficial to the community.

I’m one person. I vote yes. Everyone gets a vote as well. I’m going to make my case.

Re: Data centers trigger voter backlash

#176

Post by stvltvs »

sokoloff wrote: post #133
stvltvs wrote: post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

/me looks at the history of wealth distribution following new labor saving innovations

I would say the distributions from automated water heaters/boilers, washing machines, dishwashers, refrigerators replacing “ice boxes”, looms, assembly lines, farming combines, electric starter motors, and automated PCB assembly have been overwhelmingly good for people across a very broad spectrum of society. Is that what you’re also looking at? Or objecting to the rewards rightly earned for bringing such advances to…

We should be happy with a disproportionate amount of wealth going to rent seekers because they let us buy their goods and work in their companies making them even wealthier?

The wealthy always skew the rules to favor themselves, e.g. US capital gains being taxed at a lower rate than labor. The global standard of living has been going up but could be even higher if wealth was distributed more justly.

Re: Data centers trigger voter backlash

#177

Post by anthonypasq »

spencerflem wrote: post #170
anthonypasq wrote: post #163

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> One refrigerator sized rack at a datacenter takes as much power as 150 homes Is this supposed to scare me or something? I can't even fathom the actual point you are trying to make if it doesn't involve me having an emotional response to this statement.

Seems pretty obvious- that datacenters very measurably contribute to rising costs of electricity and climate change , and unlike aluminum processing or farming which makes things people want, is used for AI which a lot of people resent. It’s a lose-lose

> datacenters very measurably contribute to rising costs of electricity and climate change

the people who make this true are the same people who oppose the data centers. if they just let people build solar and data centers neither of those things would be true.

Re: Data centers trigger voter backlash

#178

Post by loganmn »

BigTTYGothGF wrote: post #73
cjfd wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can talk about UBI if you want to appear nice but people on UBI are also rather useless. Of course the real solution to the problem will be the change of carbon based life into silicon based life and the extermination of the former kind of life. Which is not the elected representatives problem if it happens to happen more than 4 years into the future.

> people on UBI are also rather useless UBI is going to get us a lot more artists of all kinds.

> UBI is going to get us a lot more artists of all kinds.

I think the tech bros want to replace artists also

Re: Data centers trigger voter backlash

#179

Post by spencerflem »

anthonypasq wrote: post #177
spencerflem wrote: post #170

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seems pretty obvious- that datacenters very measurably contribute to rising costs of electricity and climate change , and unlike aluminum processing or farming which makes things people want, is used for AI which a lot of people resent. It’s a lose-lose

> datacenters very measurably contribute to rising costs of electricity and climate change the people who make this true are the same people who oppose the data centers. if they just let people build solar and data centers neither of those things would be true.

Who’s saying not to build solar?

Re: Data centers trigger voter backlash

#180

Post by xp84 »

spencerflem wrote: post #159
miiiiiike wrote: post #154

It’s reaching the point of absurdity in my area. People are bringing “All data centers are flammable” signs to city meetings. A plot of land that’s already zoned for the heaviest of industrial activities, is across the street from a dump, 3 miles from an airport, 16 miles from a nuclear generating station, and in a region with good climate, and no water crunch is a pretty good place for a data center. Facts don’t mat…

One refrigerator sized rack at a datacenter takes as much power as 150 homes, and they’re using it for technology that disempowers and annoys people. It’s pretty obviously offensive. All for rezoning golf courses too

Nobody's shutting off those 150 homes to take their electricity, though. They have to buy it themselves. Lots of industrial things take tons of energy, from metal smelting to food production.

Oh, and datacenters alone shouldn't even make electricity more expensive, because rates are regulated. The state regulators have to approve rate raises. Now, are the regulators a bunch of stooges captured by the utilities who always do their bidding? Probably! But that's a good reason to throw your corrupt state politicians out of office and hopefully run them out of town on a rail -- not to protest datacenters.

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