The rumor is going around on X that foreign enemies of the US (especially China) are trying to influence Americans through social networks against building data centers.
It's of course entirely believable that they would do this. Why wouldn't they?
Americans are rallying against data centers. Surprisingly few are getting built
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Re: Americans are rallying against data centers. Surprisingly few are getting built
#82Re: Americans are rallying against data centers. Surprisingly few are getting built
#83If there's one thing Americans can agree on, it's that we don't like building things.
Why should we? Corporations steamroll the public, take their tax breaks and ask for more.
I do like living and working in buildings, using computers, refrigeration systems and transit infrastructure, getting medical care, and eating cooked food, so I think building things is by far a net positive.
Also, banking, scientific research, offsite backups, and the internet have been very useful, so data centers are pretty great.
Re: Americans are rallying against data centers. Surprisingly few are getting built
#84Earlier quoted context omitted.
Why should we? Corporations steamroll the public, take their tax breaks and ask for more.
I do like living and working in buildings, using computers, refrigeration systems and transit infrastructure, getting medical care, and eating cooked food, so I think building things is by far a net positive. Also, banking, scientific research, offsite backups, and the internet have been very useful, so data centers are pretty great.
May they build a data center next to your home.
It's always nice to be close to things we cherish dearly.
Re: Americans are rallying against data centers. Surprisingly few are getting built
#85Earlier quoted context omitted.
Nonsense. Who consumes the goods produced by the factories and mines? Who lives in the apartments and takes the high speed rail? Automation is also a massive boon to the common man. It's the only reason we're not both dirt farmers right now, and is responsible for most of the increase in standard of living over the last two centuries. Your views are short-sighted.
> Who consumes the goods produced by the factories and mines? Not all consumption is good. It can harm health, relationships, etc. And many goods have been ravaged by planned obsolescence and other corner cutting such that we're forced to consume more to maintain status quo. > Who lives in the apartments and takes the high speed rail? This is frankly an entirely different class from mines and factories. While there i…
>Not all consumption is good.
That's not your call to make. If I am willing to spend my hard-earned money on a thing, it's because I think it will improve my life. Who are you to tell me otherwise? You're not my mom.
And it is not true that we "Privatize the profits, socialize the losses". Bailouts are rare exceptions; in general, investors take the loss when a business fails. They are last in line in bankruptcy court and cannot be insured.
Re: Americans are rallying against data centers. Surprisingly few are getting built
#86Earlier quoted context omitted.
I do like living and working in buildings, using computers, refrigeration systems and transit infrastructure, getting medical care, and eating cooked food, so I think building things is by far a net positive. Also, banking, scientific research, offsite backups, and the internet have been very useful, so data centers are pretty great.
May they build a data center next to your home. It's always nice to be close to things we cherish dearly.
There is a data center in my town.
I drove by it and don't get the fuss. It's a box in an industrial park. It makes a little bit of noise but not nearly as much as the paper factory next to it. People just like to whine.
Re: Americans are rallying against data centers. Surprisingly few are getting built
#87I'm surprised they haven't tried painting them "Go Away Green", vs stark off-white monoliths. https://themeparkarchitect.com/go-away-green-disneys-paint-c...
I don't think that would work. Per your article: > While many theme park fans may initially believe there is only one ‘magical’ go away green color that was developed by Imagineering, that couldn’t be further from the truth. There are a plethora of varying shades of green hues developed and utilized by Walt Disney Imagineers, and other theme park designers, depending on the theme park’s location and surrounding color…
In that case, try the "Blue Cube" method, like the old Onizuka Air Force Station near Moffet Field.
Re: Americans are rallying against data centers. Surprisingly few are getting built
#88Earlier quoted context omitted.
I’m fine with datacenters being built as long as we have some rules: they have to be quiet enough to not be audible beyond the border of the land owned by the datacenter. They have to pay for new electrical capacity so that they don’t burden locals with that externality. Really, that’s it. I think most people could get behind that.
Does anyone have any numbers on what percentage of recent datacenters don't follow those rules? Those are completely reasonable requirements. But, the high-pitched online discussion tends to imply building a datacenter requires doing everything the worst possible way every time. I know there are problematic data centers. I just want to know what the stats are vs. the rhetoric.
I don't have all the numbers but as someone who lives in VA and has had their power bill _double_ over the last year, I'd be hard-pressed to think DCs are commonly paying their fair share when tariffs like this need to be passed: https://virginiamercury.com/2026/08/05/scc-orders-dominion-t...
Re: Americans are rallying against data centers. Surprisingly few are getting built
#89Earlier quoted context omitted.
May they build a data center next to your home. It's always nice to be close to things we cherish dearly.
There is a data center in my town. I drove by it and don't get the fuss. It's a box in an industrial park. It makes a little bit of noise but not nearly as much as the paper factory next to it. People just like to whine.
There's stuff in my town that I don't mind being there, but they are "over there" enough not to bother me.
Re: Americans are rallying against data centers. Surprisingly few are getting built
#90If there's one thing Americans can agree on, it's that we don't like building things.
I think it’s just a breakdown of trust in the government to weigh the interests of the builder and tenants of commercial / industrial properties against the local community. When it seems like government doesn’t have your back in negotiating and enforcing the details, people will fall back to a “default deny” stance to exert what control they have over the process.
I think we’re seeing this in a lot of aspects of society. Commercial interests have pushed aside all other stakeholders in the power structure and people are increasingly resorting to brute force methods to express their grievance. Replacing city council seats over single issues, cutting down Flock cameras, etc…