On 29 Dec 2005 12:33:59 -0800, "spudnuty" wrote:


Robertm wrote:
"Commodore Joe Redcloud©" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 29 Dec 2005 19:49:52 GMT, "Tom Horne, Electrician"
wrote:

Tom Horne

"This alternating current stuff is just a fad. It is much too dangerous
for general use." Thomas Alva Edison

For those who don't know, Edison's first working municipal electrical
system was DC.


Commodore Joe Redcloud©

That's exactly why he said ac was dangerous. He had a vested interest in the
use of DC.

Bob
Which he actually developed into the electric chair:

Which is why his opponents, the competing company, were able to say
that DC was dangerous,

http://inventors.about.com/od/hstart...tric_Chair.htm
'Course DC is no fun either, talk to the guys who work on the CTAs "L"
trains.

That's where the metaphor got started, that abortion or social
security or whatever is the "third rail" of American politics. The
third rail, touch it and you die, referring to the power rail on an L:
or subway.

They told me about pulling an arc in a light socket replacing
a bulb, nothing to do but walk away from it.
Richard

There's a bronze plaque in Lower Manhattan, NYC, where Edison's
original power station was, but no museum or anything. Not worth
going out of one's way for, unless you're really devoted to "being
there". But there are other things to sightsee there, and the
location would be in history books (but probably not in NYC tourist
books.) (It's 2 to 4 blocks from the East River, and tthat might have
been waterfront property at the time.)

Remove NOPSAM to email me. Please let
me know if you have posted also.