Electricity rates soar.
Short power supplies lead to rolling blackouts. Gasoline prices are far higher than a year ago, and natural gas costs are spiraling. Once we restore order to the market, we must increase the supply of energy while we reduce the demand. In the middle of this tidal wave of bad energy news are consumers, who feel powerless in a situation over which they have little control. But through conservation, ratepayers can wise up and to some degree practice their own version of marketplace manipulation.