It sounds simple enough. But then you hear about the utility companies who made billions of dollars in the early years of deregulation and shunted it all to their parent companies. Did they not plan for the future? Did they think the price of power would stay the same forever? It seems their plan all along was to 'take the money and run.' Now, in self-righteous tones, the utilities go on television to say consumer electricity bills must go up or they-the-companies will lose everything.

We -- their customers -- won't be affected at all, of course, if our monthly bills double or triple.

Then there are all these power plants that have suddenly been shut down for repair and for so long. Some say since demand is low in winter this is a good time to do it. Give me a break. A recent study showed that more power plants are off-line now than ever before. It seems these companies haven't heard of regularly scheduled maintenance. And who benefits from these plant shut-downs? Could it be the power-generators themselves?

While everyone here loves blaming the current administration for California's power woes, I do hope some who have lived here longer than I have remember that deregulation was a Republican/Big-Business thing. It was under former governor Wilson that this mess started. He's been strangely quiet on the topic, from what I can tell. Probably too busy tallying up his gains from energy company stock.

Maybe Californians do deserve to deal with this on their own. I've heard people say that other states and the federal government shouldn't have to intervene to keep California's lights on. I can see their point. But, I do have trouble with one thing. That would be some of the people President Bush has surrounded himself with in Washington. I believe these are the folks who advised Dubya to let California fend for itself; do not step in and set price controls, even temporarily. I have no doubt these former oil men know what they are talking about. After all, some of these top-level advisors have some pretty strong ties to Enron, the largest supplier of some forms of energy in the US.

I wonder, who do you think gains the most from Bush's policy, from current high energy prices?

It's all this doublespeak that has me steamed. PG&E says it's millions of dollars in the hole, but an audit finds that they may have a lot more money than they say they do. It's just in an account that they can't use to pay their bills. Do I care which account it's in? PG&E has the money, so pay up, please.

Then there's Stanford University, urging its employees and students to conserve energy, while fountains (running on some sort of power, I assume) flow 8 to 10 hours a day and some outdoor lights stay on during the daytime. I was trying to figure out what exempted the university from conservation efforts until I read that it generates its own power. So much power that it can 'contribute' excess energy to the local utility, PG&E.

Contribute? Uh, here's a better word: sell. Stanford sells its excess energy to PG&E, presumably at the current market rate. PG&E, in turn, sells power to...me. In other words, Stanford is profiting handsomely, I bet, during this energy shortage. I'm having a hard time convincing myself to conserve now at work. Why should I help Stanford sell more energy to the local utilities? My energy rates are going up by around 9%. I'll conserve at Stanford when my employer gives me a 9% raise.

I'm sure people in India are having a good laugh at us. What a bunch of wimps. Ask them to turn a few lights off and watch them cry. True. I think it's ridiculous, the amount of energy that is wasted here, just if you consider lighting alone. But, judging from the billboards, store fronts and decorative lighting that stay on all night, many people aren't taking this crisis seriously. Bully for them. They are the same ones who aren't too worried about the dotcom bust either. The special California people who can afford to pay whatever their monthly bill shows.

I've been in enough power-cuts in India to know how to manage without electricity for hours. Floor to ceiling windows help with lighting and I like taking the stairs. If the crisis continues in the summer, well, I like it warm and that's why they make hand-held fans, right? Heat this winter is another matter, of course. Building a fire or using a kerosene stove in my carpeted living room is not an option, so I just layer up and cover up. But, thanks to my own conservation efforts, I've seen my electricity bill drop by a few dollars this past month. Take that, PG&E!

But, now that my fingers are about frozen, I'm passing the torch to Samir Kelekar who will finish this column. It seems California isn't the only state that's being bilked by politicians and businessmen. Dr. Kelekar comments on the state of power in Maharashtra in Part II.

Reeta Sinha