Despite radiation fears, aftershock warnings, power cuts, train disruption and half-empty supermarkets, many queued patiently on March 15th to meet their tax deadlines.
Those steps would do little to relieve the acute shortage of electricity that has forced California to issue its highest electricity alerts for two weeks running, warning that power might be cut off at any moment to selected parts of the state.
"Well, I think it gets back to Lord Acton's admonition," he said, referring to the 19th century British historian's warning that power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
They validate John Adams's old warning that "power always thinks it has a great soul".
But soon factory owners were warning that power cuts would lead to a recession, and that argument prevailed.
All too often in my life I have welcomed a particular leader as a hero, only to see him or her ignore Lord Acton's warning: "All power corrupts.
Working remotely is feasible because Wi-Fi is ubiquitous (though it stops without warning during power cuts, which occur daily – sometimes for hours at a time).
Kuwait's electricity ministry has given warning of power cuts and electricity rationing, since more locals will stay at home for Ramadan, with air conditioners on full throttle, rather than go abroad, as many of them usually do in August.
With fuel in short supply in many areas and utilities warning that power may not be back for a week or more in some areas, businesses found themselves preparing for the equivalent of a long siege.
He said he did not want security to get pushed to the side because of budget problems, particularly since the F.B.I. has issued alerts since Sept. 11 warning that power plants were being targeted by terrorists.
