1) A prime example of what I’ve been arguing with CRTC about — people in the UK with digital phones were without access to 911 for days after a major storm. Even cell towers were destroyed leaving those with charged cell phones unable to call for an ambulance, fire truck or police. Why is CRTC allowing/promoting this when a condition for being a licenced phone company is providing 911 service? And just as the people in the UK, people in BC and Canada are not aware that this will happen once they lose their landlines. We must demand informed consent, as a minimum.
In California, homes with digital service might have their phone jacks disabled, forcing them to use cordless or cell phones only. Telus has promised that regular handsets will be able to work with its digital service, but for how long? Another reason for concern.
(click on photos to enlarge)
Storm Arwen: Why power cuts left people unable to phone for help
“Power cuts caused by Storm Arwen have highlighted a potentially lethal problem in the home phone network’s digital transformation. Traditional landlines are being phased out in favour of broadband-enabled phones reliant on electricity. As hundreds of thousands of households across northern England lost power, people in remote areas without a mobile reception were left unable to call for help.
“There was no way of getting hold of anybody,” says 74-year-old Jim Bownass, who lives in the small village of Crosthwaite, near Kendal, in the Lake District.
When Storm Arwen took out his electricity on 26 November he was left with “no communication with the outside world whatsoever”. No way of calling for an ambulance, no way of asking for less urgent help and no way of talking to his power company.””
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-59564480
Separate from the storm and lack of 911 access is the concern that people who do not have access to the internet will not have a phone. Many of these people are the most vulnerable — the elderly or the disabled who cannot afford or use the internet. What about them?
BT face angry backlash from campaigners after axing landline phones
“BT has announced that it will replace traditional landline handsets with a new ‘digital’ phone, despite calls from campaigners and isolated residents that it will cause an “unnecessary” worry for thousands of the most vulnerable in the North East.
The changeover, which is expected to come into effect in 2025 from the technology firm, will force all homes online and push every regional homeowner into the digital world.
According to BT, the phone will need to be connected to the internet to make any calls to other devices and will need to be powered by electricity mains.”
2) A report, on what was hoped to be a major study, concludes that there is no evidence that cell phones cause cancers in kids. The researchers were from 14 countries, and most I am not familiar with, but I can tell you that the one from Canada, Dr. Daniel Krewski, has a long relationship with the telecoms. The McLaughlin Centre in Ottawa, where he works, was funded in large part by the industry. In fact, he was kicked off the last panel that reviewed Safety Code 6 because of his conflicts of interest.
Many experts will be responding to this, I’m sure, finding the problems with the researcher parameters. For example: “Regular phone use was defined as having made or received calls at least once a week for a period of 3 months or more.” What teenager do you know who receives or makes one call a week? We can rest assured that the industry will use this report to refute independent scientific evidence of harm.
Wireless phone use in childhood and adolescence and neuroepithelial brain tumours: Results from the international MOBI-Kids study
“Overall, our study provides no evidence of a causal association between wireless phone use and brain tumours in young people. However, the sources of bias summarised above prevent us from ruling out a small increased risk.”
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412021006942#!
3) Spain’s telecoms are expanding the 5G grid, but it appears that they are not using millimeter wave frequencies so the speeds will not be as fast as people expect. The infrastructure is being put into place, though, with thousands of nodes reaching across the country. Isn’t it odd that every country is being swamped by 5G and loss of copper phone line service all at the same time?
Telecoms Provide 5G to More than 80% of Population; Plan to Expand Coverage in 2022 (Spain)
“Orange had said it expects its 5G network to reach 90% of the Spanish population by the end of 2022.
Orange is currently offering 5G in the country through a combination of non-standalone (NSA) 5G and Dynamic Spectrum Sharing (DSS) technologies. The operator launched commercial 5G services in Spain in September of 2020, using equipment provided by Swedish vendor Ericsson.
Meanwhile, Telefónica previously said it has extended the coverage of its 5G network to over 80% of the country’s population as of the end of the first quarter of 2021, having installed more than 4,300 nodes that offer coverage to more than 37 million inhabitants.
The telco said that its 5G network reached 1,253 towns and cities across Spain. The company launched its 5G service in September 2020.”
Sharon Noble, Director, Coalition to Stop Smart Meters
“Truth is mighty and will prevail. There is nothing wrong with this, except that it ain’t so.” Mark Twain