{"id":6773,"date":"2018-04-26T23:07:42","date_gmt":"2018-04-27T03:07:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.caskeys.com\/dc\/?p=6773"},"modified":"2025-05-19T19:55:25","modified_gmt":"2025-05-19T23:55:25","slug":"electric-boogaloo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.caskeys.com\/dc\/electric-boogaloo\/","title":{"rendered":"Electric Boogaloo"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

For <\/span>most <\/span>of <\/span>us, <\/span>dealing <\/span>with <\/span>utilities <\/span>or <\/span>large <\/span>corporations <\/span>is <\/span>straightforward, <\/span>if <\/span>a <\/span>bit <\/span>impersonal: <\/span>pay <\/span>your <\/span>bills <\/span>down <\/span>to <\/span>the <\/span>last <\/span>cent. <\/span>If <\/span>you <\/span>don\u2019t, <\/span>the <\/span>service <\/span>gets <\/span>cut, <\/span>and <\/span>the <\/span>company <\/span>will <\/span>cheerfully <\/span>chase <\/span>you <\/span>down <\/span>for <\/span>the <\/span>balance – <\/span>sometimes <\/span>spending <\/span>more <\/span>than <\/span>the <\/span>bill <\/span>itself <\/span>to <\/span>recover <\/span>it.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This <\/span>process <\/span>makes <\/span>sense. <\/span>It <\/span>simply <\/span>isn\u2019t <\/span>feasible <\/span>to <\/span>manually <\/span>handle <\/span>every <\/span>transaction <\/span>or <\/span>customer <\/span>inquiry <\/span>when <\/span>a <\/span>company <\/span>serves <\/span>thousands, <\/span>or <\/span>even <\/span>millions. <\/span>That\u2019s <\/span>where <\/span>computers <\/span>come <\/span>in. <\/span>Before <\/span>automation, <\/span>this <\/span>was <\/span>handled <\/span>by <\/span>rooms <\/span>full <\/span>of <\/span>employees – <\/span>highly <\/span>trained, <\/span>efficiently <\/span>robotic <\/span>humans <\/span>who <\/span>functioned <\/span>as <\/span>an <\/span>analog <\/span>computer. <\/span>Either <\/span>way, <\/span>there\u2019s <\/span>no <\/span>time <\/span>for <\/span>deliberation – <\/span>only <\/span>execution <\/span>of <\/span>policy.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The <\/span>downside <\/span>is <\/span>obvious: <\/span>when <\/span>a <\/span>human <\/span>touch <\/span>is<\/span><\/em> needed, <\/span>it <\/span>can <\/span>be <\/span>frustratingly <\/span>absent. <\/span>We\u2019ve <\/span>all <\/span>endured <\/span>the <\/span>endless <\/span>menu <\/span>loops, <\/span>disinterested <\/span>call <\/span>center <\/span>scripts, <\/span>and <\/span>bureaucratic <\/span>black <\/span>holes. <\/span>Yet, <\/span>we <\/span>deal <\/span>with <\/span>it. <\/span>Why? <\/span>Because <\/span>we <\/span>expect <\/span>to <\/span>take <\/span>responsibility <\/span>for <\/span>our <\/span>own <\/span>accounts, <\/span>and <\/span>we <\/span>understand <\/span>that <\/span>if <\/span>we <\/span>don\u2019t <\/span>advocate <\/span>for <\/span>ourselves, <\/span>no <\/span>one <\/span>else <\/span>will.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pompeii <\/span>Estates <\/span>of <\/span>Bayside, <\/span>New <\/span>York, <\/span>evidently <\/span>sees <\/span>things <\/span>differently. <\/span>In <\/span>Pompeii <\/span>Estates, <\/span>Inc. <\/span>v. <\/span>Consolidated <\/span>Edison <\/span>Co. <\/span>of <\/span>N.Y., <\/span>Inc.<\/span><\/em>, <\/span>Pompeii <\/span>sued <\/span>the <\/span>utility <\/span>for “<\/span>wrongful <\/span>termination” <\/span>of <\/span>electrical <\/span>service, <\/span>claiming <\/span>roughly $<\/span>1,000 <\/span>in <\/span>property <\/span>damage.<\/span>
(<\/span>Grimmelmann, <\/span>J. (<\/span>n.d.). <\/span>Internet <\/span>Law: <\/span>Cases <\/span>and <\/span>Problems.<\/span><\/em>)<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pompeii\u2019s <\/span>core <\/span>argument <\/span>was <\/span>that <\/span>notices <\/span>of <\/span>nonpayment <\/span>were <\/span>sent <\/span>to <\/span>the <\/span>property <\/span>itself, <\/span>not <\/span>to <\/span>their <\/span>business <\/span>office – <\/span>and <\/span>as <\/span>such, <\/span>they <\/span>were <\/span>unaware <\/span>of <\/span>the <\/span>issue. <\/span>The <\/span>court <\/span>ruled <\/span>in <\/span>Pompeii\u2019s <\/span>favor, <\/span>finding <\/span>Consolidated <\/span>Edison <\/span>negligent <\/span>for <\/span>terminating <\/span>service <\/span>without <\/span>proper <\/span>notice.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I <\/span>would <\/span>argue <\/span>the <\/span>opposite – <\/span>not <\/span>only <\/span>should <\/span>Consolidated <\/span>Edison <\/span>have <\/span>prevailed, <\/span>but <\/span>it <\/span>may <\/span>have <\/span>had <\/span>cause <\/span>to <\/span>counter-<\/span>sue <\/span>to <\/span>recover <\/span>costs <\/span>and <\/span>court <\/span>fees.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s <\/span>consider <\/span>a <\/span>few <\/span>facts:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n