The word for today is kakistocracy, a book you might want to check out, and in the “You have to admit he’s making a good point” department…
Energy budgets are just like monetary ones and a lot of good advice can be found in David Copperfield.
Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen, nineteen and six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery.
For our power use, it’s all about bringing in more energy than we actually use. When the sun is not shining we use less and when it’s bright out maybe we use a bit more. Simple as that.
Sadly, in the consumerist world, the answer to all problems is more. Bigger battery banks, more solar panels, gensets, and absurdly priced hydro generators, which leads to more energy use and it just keeps spiraling up and up.
The question I find myself asking when someone is complaining about energy issues is do you really need to use that much power and where can you cut back. Of course, no one is asking that and they’re usually asking about getting more rather than less.
Which is why when a solar panel is putting in 10 amps and we’re only using 6 amps, it results in happiness.
We have lived off-grid for 50 years. First pioneer style with kerosene lamps and hand pumped water. No indoor plumbing. Now we live mostly off solar. Incredibly more reliable than our electric utility PG&E. Plus we don’t burn down forests and houses. Our house is modestly wired. We live on a 30A 240V breaker for everything. It is amazing to me, even tho’ I design houses, why a new house needs 200A. Industry has written the codes we must follow, but it is idiocy. We do not lack for gizmos and appliances. Days when solar provides more than enough power we charge our cars. That feels like a real bonus and happiness.