The Store Door Law

[spinozany]

The [NYC] City Council is expected to pass a law tomorrow making it illegal for large stores to keep their doors open with the air-conditioning running.  Business owners say the practice attracts customers on hot days, but many see it as a waste of energy

Comments

[spinozany]

Energy conservation.

[spinozany]

When their actions affect the commons, it is an appropriate area for governmental action. See, e.g. Calebresi, "The Tragedy of the Commons."

FDA, mandatory education, speed limits, etc, etc. Are you serious, or trolling?

[spinozany]

Fine. Most environmental protection laws.

I find your mosaic of libertarianism and socialism most puzzling sometimes.

[spinozany]

I'd rather be able to tell both you *and* them to knock it off :-)

More seriously, it's not a piffle, piffles have no cost, this does.

[spinozany]

Funny you should ask: I had the local utility company install a thermostat that they can control. At times of peak demand, they turn off the compressor on my central AC. It's a small price to pay if it helps avoid building another fossil fuel power plant to meet peak demand.

And it depends on which neighbor. I'm in favor of congestion pricing. No one is talking outright prohibition here, that's a red herring. It's allocation of costs in accord with environmental stewardship and to a lesser degree (but which I suspect offends you more) social custom.

Polluting the environment a civil liberty? Really?

[spinozany]

Free choice. The thermostat allows me to control it online, and they gave me $25 one-time, which was symbolic. I was attracted to the online cool control [sic] aspect, but I might have done it anyway. There is a simple way to override their control [on a per-use basis] if needed.

I'm not the best market for the device, since I use AC as little as possible anyway. But when brownout conditions arise during heat waves, it's a useful kick to do the right thing.

I wish it were mandatory, but apparently a lot of people agree with your fossil fuel anarchism.

[spinozany]

And no, collectively, nationwide, their piffle is very expensive. If you leave it to market forces, business make poor choices, competing against each other with frivolity, if not mindlessness. This law saves business from having to "one-up" each other. And if they *must* be outside the new norm, they can simply pay the fine.

In drought conditions, there are fines for watering your lawn or washing the sidewalk irresponsibly. Are you opposed to that too?