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Comment by rimbo789 | Hacker News Reader

Solid article. Outlines well why no one wants these things. I hope it helps more communities fight these and ensure almost none get built

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I hope it also helps investors and hyperscalers to understand the risk of losing the trust of the public.

The majority of people opposed AC current, cars, steam engines, rail tracks, airplanes, computers, the internet, and so on. There was always irrational fear present with new tech advances. People opposing data centers will not look any less foolish than those who opposed AC current.

I don't think the people who opposed those things look foolish even today. Most of those things, in their early days, were implemented haphazardly and with an incredible lack of regulatory oversight, and the reason they were not quite as disastrous as they could have been is that people opposed them.

And people opposing data centers today who are opposing unfettered data center creations will not look any *more* foolish than those who opposed the things you cite.

I used the softer word "foolish" - but in reality, they are idiots. Yes, they are, and they will look like idiots in the future when China wins the AI race. In the same way, nuclear opponents are idiots and have contributed to the decline in nuclear research in the West over the past 50 years (looking at you, Europe, especially Germany), while China keeps advancing its nuclear research (fission and fusion as well) and building nuclear plants to ensure its future energy independence and dominance.

What, exactly, are we racing for? Smarter chatboxes?

Nuclear plants are being forced to shut down in this heat wave, due to low river levels, as they don't have enough head pressure to run their cooling pumps and if they had different pumps their waste heat would sterilize the river. I'm sure China has no qualms about sterilising rivers but the next, hotter, heat wave will dry them up anyway, and they'll still have to turn the plants off.

Just proving my point. "Hey, look, AC current can kill you. We must stop this nonsense"

https://www.wired.com/2012/01/0104edison-uses-ac-to-kill-ele...

What are we racing for? Smarter chatboxes?

I need evidence for all of these please.

Search engines are free.

So you don't have any evidence.

There were even some complete and utter fools who said Asbestos wasnt all that.

And the ones who said smoking caused lung cancer.

Nothing that makes you look that cool could be bad for you

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