by Dave Nichols

I’ve noticed my gas and electric bills are much higher than they were a few years ago. Reviewing old bills I found that during the past year gas/cubic feet went up 27% and electricity/kWh increased 18% annually for the last three years. Across the state the gas and electric rates have climbed in a similar trajectory. At a rate substantially higher than overall inflation.

Most of the gas and electricity in this country are distributed by investor owned utilities.  However about 30% of the electricity and 5% of the gas are distributed by publicly owned or co-op owned utilities. PPL and UGI are investor owned. Over the last three years investor owned utilities electricity rates have increased 49% more than inflation. In contrast, publicly owned utilities have increased 44% below the inflation rate.

Utilities are monopolies in that only one utility is allowed to operate in a given territory. There is a competitive market for the gas and electricity itself but the utilities own and charge for the infrastructure to distribute the energy to your home. You can see these charges separated out on your utility bill. Utilities have been given monopoly rights to the distribution because it is inefficient to have competing infrastructure such as gas pipelines and electric lines in the same area. The monopoly right is conditioned on a social contract that permits the utility to earn a reasonable profit for the investments they make to the infrastructure. However, the investment must be necessary, cost effective, and environmentally sound. This contract is regulated at the state level by the PUC, the Public Utilities Commission, appointed by the governor and approved by the state senate.

According to the organization, The American Economic Liberties Project, the crucial reason that the investor owned utility rates have increased well over the general inflation rate is that they are granted excessive rates of return by the utility commission. Concurrent with the excessive rate of returned allowed by Utility commissions is the incentive to invest in unnecessary projects. Public Utilities finance their infrastructure investment by selling bonds in the general market. Their cost is not influence by individual profit motive. The investor owned utilities have been able to unfairly charge consumers because of a weak public utilities commission. The American Economic Liberties Project has published an in depth discussion of the problem and recommendations such as having the state legislature enact codes that set utilities rate of return to market based cost of capital. They recommend the state provide legal assistance to consumer advocacy groups. They recommend that advocacy groups to decide upon a single economic model to define a fair rater of return on capital. They also recommend the commission provide clear explanation to the public on how to comment at public hearings. You can read the complete article on their web site. The link is provided in the written transcript of this talk on the UU Social Action web page.

Resources
Rate of Return Equals Cost of Capital: A Simple, Fair Formula to Stop Investor-Owned Utilities From Overcharging the Public
This discussion did not include the subject of electric grid improvements required for the transition to renewable energy, for re industrialization, and for data centers. If utilities are allowed to charge exorbitant rates for these grid investments, consumers will pay dearly. There is a proposed PPL rate increase hearing Monday Dec 8 @ 6:00 PM at the Scranton University Brennan Hall-Rose Room 5th floor, 320 Madison Avenue Scranton, PA 18510.

Tell the PUC: Pennsylvanians Should Not Pay for Data Center Energy Exploitation
The Sierra Club has more information about the hearing. You can find it at their website or use the link printed in the transcript.

by Lindsey Riddell

As we move into the holiday season, it’s important to be aware of negative and harmful aspects of this time of year, specifically Thanksgiving. The traditional Thanksgiving story ignores the brutal history of colonization, including genocide, land theft, and the destruction of Native cultures. It also perpetuates harmful stereotypes and contributes to the marginalization of Indigenous people. There is also a reinforcement of inequality and power dynamics, specifically the societal pressure to be grateful can be especially harmful for members of disadvantaged groups and may discourage them from challenging injustice.

How Can We Rethink, Rework, and Revolutionize Thanksgiving Celebrations?

• Before enjoying your meal, take a moment of silence. Remember and honor the ancestors and people occupying this land before colonization.
  
• In some households, American history is completely detached from Thanksgiving itself. Now considered “Family Day,” many families focus on reflecting, gratitude, and family bonding instead.
• Prepare and enjoy a meal using ingredients native to your location! Experiment with decolonizing your dinner for the evening.
• Plant and support native biodiversity in your community. Repair the damage of colonization on the Earth.
• Recognize this November 27th as a Day of Mourning in honor of Native ancestors and the struggles within indigenous communities today and historically.
  
  • An annual tradition since 1970, National Day of Mourning (NDOM) is a solemn, spiritual and highly political day. Many indigenous people fast from sundown the day before through the afternoon of that day (and have a social after NDOM so that participants can break their fasts). It is also a day that participants feel strength in action and solidarity.
    

by Eoin Carroll

Pennsylvania has lots of water.

We have over 86,000 miles of streams (2nd only to Alaska).

While we are certainly not drought-proof, we usually enjoy an adequate amount of precipitation such that we can grow a wide variety of plants.

We have sufficient groundwater such that you can dig a well in most of Pennsylvania and expect to find suitable amounts of water.

When you view the earth from space you see a big blue ball.  This is because 2/3’s of the earth’s surface is covered in water.

So why should we care?

Humans are very dependent on freshwater and there is a great deal less of this.
Only about 3% of the water on earth is freshwater.
2/3’s of this is locked up as ice meaning that we are dependent on 1% of the earth’s water.

As Unitarian Universalists,  our 7th Principle is “Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.”  We are a community that highly values the environment and are always looking for ways we can help protect and improve it.

Water is the foundation of life. The cleaner the water the healthier the ecosystem.

There is no economical way to create new water, so we must make good use of the water we have.

How we treat our water has a big impact on those downstream of us.

Here at the UU we are in the Abraham’s Creek watershed.  Abraham’s Creek flows through Francis Slocum park and then continues on to connect to the Susquehanna River which flows down to the Chesapeake Bay.

The Chesapeake Bay is an amazing environment rich in natural resources. Unfortunately its health is poor.  Its largest problems are excess sediment and excess nutrients.

The major supplier of freshwater to the bay is the Susquehanna River.  Unsurprisingly, the major problems of the Susquehanna are excess sediment and excess nutrients.

If we want a healthy bay then we need healthy rivers.
If we want healthy rivers then we need healthy streams and creeks.
If we want healthy streams and creeks then we need healthy watersheds.

Our new Watershed Circle has formed to be part of the solution.  In future talks, we will be sharing information on things we can do to improve the health of our watershed.

by Lilly Gioia

To counteract the propaganda of Jerry Falwell and his Moral Majority Unitarian Universalists were among the founders of the Interfaith Alliance, now a national voice for Freedom of Religion, for those of all faiths or no faith. I’ve been a long-time supporter of the Interfaith Alliance.

In late October the Interfaith Alliance with the assistance of Democracy Forward sued the Trump administration to obtain facts about their newly formed “Task Force to Eradicate Anti-Christian Bias.” President Trump’s February 6, 2025 Executive Order created this group to “review all federal departments and agencies for Anti-Christian Bias and recommend actions the President can take to “rectify past injustices of anti-Christian conduct.”

The Alliance promptly filed a Freedom of Information (FOIA) request to check on how the Trump order was being implemented, to no avail. That is why they’ve just sued the U.S. Justice Department, U.S. State Department, and U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs so that these agencies are forced to fulfill the FOIA requests. The Alliance says: “We are the antidote to the Trump Administration's use of religion to justify authoritarianism.”

There has been no evidence of widespread anti-Christian bias in the United States. Experts have found that perpetuating this myth is deeply offensive to the actual persecution of Christians around the world.

When this executive order was first announced, the Interfaith Alliance organized 26 prominent Christian leaders to denounce it – and made national news in the process. The Christian leaders call out how the administration itself may now serve as the most prominent source of anti-Christian bias in the United States today. Recall how President Trump attacked an Episcopal Bishop in Washington Cathedral when she made a scriptural plea for “mercy” during President Jimmy Carter’s funeral service.

I applaud the Interfaith Alliance for all the organizing they’ve done to involve communities of faith in highly successful No King's Day Rallies.

You may find out more about their valuable work at interfaithalliance.org.

by Brian Dugas

On Thursday a man and his daughter were taken off a street in Dunmore by ICE agents.

In Lehigh Valley ICE arrested 17 people in June who were working on an “unoccupied property.”

In Honesdale employees at a restaurant were detained.

There are multiple claims of people being detained in Wilkes Barre and the Poconos The Luzerne County Flood Protection Authority is leasing space to Homeland Security Investigations(HSI) which is the investigative arm of ICE The Luzerne County DA has signed an agreement with ICE to participate in the 287(g) program, which deputizes state and local law enforcement for immigration enforcement.

As ICE activity in the region continues to grow, a small group of concerned citizens have met repeatedly to get organized and figure out what we can do. There are two of us enrolled in a program with Villanova that trains and certifies people to provide legal support, which is currently nonexistent in Wilkes Barre. The closest agency certified to do it is Catholic Social Services in Scranton, and while that trip isn’t too bad for those of us with a car, it is an enormous challenge for someone without access to a vehicle.

I have learned a lot since I started on this quest to work with immigrants in our region. As Joyce Myers said “ It’s never too late for a new beginning in your life.” I didn’t ask for this, and I certainly wasn’t looking for it. As far as I’m concerned I’m just reacting to what is happening in our country. In a strange way this crisis is giving me the opportunity to reinvent myself once again. I never really considered myself much of a rebel, but I can see that our country needs a few of them right now.

And I’m once again reminded that you are never too old to learn something new. I have learned that there is a large population of immigrants living in Wilkes Barre. They are working and thriving in our community with very little interaction with the rest of us. That there are some very real heroes working with them, but they are few in number, and have very little support. And of course, they are all terrified of what is happening all around them.

I have been reminded again that if you truly want to understand someone, you need to hear their story. I learned this lesson the first time in my high school classroom where a bunch of obnoxious little teenagers changed my perspective on many things, and started me down a path that has taken me all over the world and then right back here to NEPA.

I am thankful to the VIISTA program and the local community members who have once again forced me out of my comfort zone and introduced me to a group of wonderful people who are just trying to survive.
If you have the desire and the courage to step out of your comfort zone, Beth and I are driving down to Hazleton to meet with the people who are running the Hazleton Integration Project which is “a community based effort that seeks to unite the people of many different cultures who call Hazleton home”. We will be leaving Monday at 5:00PM if you would like to join us.

or

You may feel more comfortable providing a Christmas gift (toys) to children aged newborn to 13. A group called Latinos Unidos en NEPA will be distributing them to children at a couple of locations on December 20th. You can either provide the gift or join us at the locations.

The bottom line is that none of us asked to be living in times like this. But here we are. As Gandalf said to Frodo when he learned about the crisis their world was facing, and expressed his desire for a less difficult life “ So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. All you have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to you.”

The world is filled with heroes who never wanted to be. They were people just like you and me who stepped forward when the times demanded it. Those times are here again. See you on the front lines.