February 2021
“The state of America’s power grids, under scrutiny after widespread blackouts left millions of Texans without power or water during a polar vortex. The four power grids in North America – western, eastern, Quebec and Texas – constitute the most massive machine that man has ever built. And it’s amazing how it connects the entire continent – I mean, just think, while you’re blending a smoothie in your kitchen, Donald Trump is using the same electricity to shred his tax returns.” —Trevor Noah
“Our power grid is a massive system that unfortunately, like a tweet from 2010, hasn’t aged well. The US grid loses power almost three times more often than it did in 1984, and far more than other industrialized nations; most of its power infrastructure hasn’t been updated in decades. This is pretty worrisome – America’s living in 2021 with an electric grid that’s barely been updated in the last 50 years. You have to update technology more often than that, people! I mean imagine trying to get through your life with the first iPhone. You couldn’t even use the maps app because New York wasn’t a state back then!” —Trevor Noah
“And the problems with the power grid are getting worse, as the grids are liable to shutdowns from climate change-fueled extreme weather and cyber-attacks. This is a scary future that the world is facing, but the good news is the United States now has Space Force. I mean, they won’t be able to protect the power grid, but if it does go down, someone in space can look down on Earth and be like, ‘Yeah, it looks like the lights are out down there.” —Trevor Noah
