Greg, I find myself looking on the bright side a bit with this situation. Maybe this experience can give some people a big kick in the butt to start doing more to conserve energy, and to find (and utilize) alternative energy sources. Already, I'm hearing stuff on the radio about ways we can change things for the better, and a lot of them involve using less fossil fuel to generate energy. This can be a significant development that would help a lot of people besides those of us in the US.

Examples: less consumption of pollution causing energy sources would improve air quality and cause less global warming. If more people use alternative energy sources, economy of scale can make them more affordable for everyone, including people who live in areas where access to power is a huge problem. Just think of what a boon it would be to third-world and developing countries if they had access to some of these technologies. They would laugh at our silly power grids.

So I see it as a good thing that people are making a big noise about this power outage. Maybe it'll help move things in a much better direction for everyone.