On Tuesday, New York State’s governor, Kathy Hochul, approved a bill banning gas stoves from most new construction as of 2026. Like so much government meddling, this allows officials to virtue-signal while making life more difficult and more expensive for regular people.
My husband and I moved into our new apartment last week. Its biggest drawback in our eyes was that the stove and oven are electric. We have always had gas in our previous homes, and it is our preference. I would rather cook on a real flame and, most importantly, when stormy weather led to electrical blackouts in the Pacific Northwest, we were still able to have hot food. Retrofitting a gas connection in our new location is apparently not an option.
If California is indeed an indicator of the direction of the rest of the country, as it has traditionally been, electrical power blackouts are going to become more of a feature of life in the United States, not because of weather but rather because of governmental incompetence, mismanagement of resources, and elitist disdain for citizens. We console ourselves that in a pinch, many of our neighbors, our family, and our friends do have gas.
While I am grateful that compared to most of the world’s occupants I enjoy a high standard of living, I know that only a few years back my dishwashing detergent was more effective than it is now, my shower pressure was more forceful, my light bulbs lasted longer, and my appliances were sturdier than they are now. These annoyances are certainly not as critical as there being schools that no longer teach patriotism, skills, or thinking; district attorneys who elevate criminals over law-abiding citizens; and a military that is self-destructing. Yet these smaller irritations do matter and, what is more, they reflect the same process of downgrading the quality of life for the average American. Banning gas stoves? It is another sad step in the wrong direction.
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