Sunday, August 13, 2006

Microwave Ovens on Towers

There is much speculation about the cause(s) of global warming. I offer this. Ten years ago, there didn't seem to be quite the problem there is today. Of course the telecommunications industry was not what it is today either. Previously microwaves were in ovens. What do they do? What do they continue to do, although in a much more low profile capacity? (as much of our recent history, if it has not been completed forgotten and replaced with Newspeak) Microwaves H-E-A-T. Up until about a decade ago, (is that about right?) microwaves were limited to ovens in your homes. They were part of a new cooking strategy that amazingly allowed you to heat things in a jiffy. Boil water, in a jiffy. Cook popcorn, in a jiffy. Implode a frog, in a jiffy. We all knew what microwaves did. H-E-A-T. Then someone in our federal government decided they were safe and licensed them to telecommunications companies. Albeit in a primitive form they began putting microwave ovens up on towers, (ugly towers) and celling, (I mean selling) these devices called cell phones, (or car phones.) It started off crude, but as technology caught up cell phones refined, more companies bought in, and more towers sprung up. (a cell, by the way, is a little area covered by one tower) First the portable phones were analog. They used an analog audio signal. Slowly but surely emerging companies pushed the technology envelope and a digital signal was born. It was not available everywhere initially, but then again you could by a "tri-mode" phone. That phone would catch either signal. Now we have little children standing around talking on cell phones in public. People are talking in cars. They are talking in coffee shops. They are talking in the grocery stores. Better watch out or you might think they are talking to you! There are "Bluetooth" wireless headsets. There is chocolate. There's the 'Razor.' Thangs can play MP3's and scratch your @#$%^. Well you get the picture. My only problem is, when the pundits debate the causes of 'global warming,' try to remember our federal government decided it was okay to put thousands of microwave ovens on towers all over the country, flip the on switch, and ask "Why is the earth getting warmer?" Go figure.