The Six Percent Solution
From earlier in the week, good news about Portland General Electric:
PGE [has moved to] the head of the pack nationally in terms of demand for green energy. Under its green-power program, Oregon's largest utility sells more kilowatts of renewable power to its residential customers than any other utility in the country, regardless of size. [Emphasis added]
Wow. PGE is nowhere near the nation's largest utility. Still, it leads the nation "green energy" signups -- people who opt to pay a bit extra on their home utility bills to support wind, solar, small hydro, or similar climate-friendly energy sources. Seems like PGE -- and its customers -- deserve a pat on on the back.
But wait, there's more! (Or perhaps less...)
Parking Lot Legislation
Here's a decent newspaper article with a lousy headline. The article is about pending new legislation that would remove parking requirements in Seattle's densest in-city neighborhoods. Not so scary, I think. But the headline is sneering and editorializing.
Before we dive in, let's get something straight. The new rules won't eliminate parking, or make it illegal, or even tax it. All they do is--gasp--stop forcing businesses and developers to provide it in abundance. Under the new rules, a developer can provide just as much parking as he or she feels like. As much as the market can bear. Or more. But they won't be forced to provide it by city law.
The article even quotes one complainer, who may have a future in headline writing:
