A recent post on the “Steven B Cooley for Holden Selectman” Facebook page includes these statements: “Wind and solar are both obsolete technologies … How can we run a modern economy on intermittent energy sources? … ask a liberal that question, his answer will be ‘batteries.’ Power can be stored in batteries. We all do this every day, storing tiny amounts … But our energy demands are almost unfathomably large … You might as well rely on pixie dust as on batteries.”
Here are a few facts from an article by Benjamin Storrow in E&E News on Feb 22, 2023: “The U.S. is in a battery boom … The surge is reshaping electric grids. In California, for example, analysts credit a wave of new battery installations with sparing the state from electric blackouts … The United States installed 4 gigawatts of battery capacity in 2022, nearly matching the 4.7 GW in all previous years combined … The battery explosion in America is largely due to the growing strength of solar … Lithium-ion batteries, which account for the vast majority of utility- scale installations, can charge quickly using surplus solar generation during the daytime hours and dispatch power over a four-hour internal in the evening. The sheer scope of America’s energy storage boom is stunning … Between now and 2026, developers plan to install 22 GW of battery capacity.”
TheHoldenMunicipal Light Department relies on the oversight of the Board of Selectmen who double as our Light Commissioners. Let’s do ourselves and HMLD a favor and not elect Steven Cooley who publishes ill-informed … ideas about critical issues surrounding the future of Holden’s electric utility. … Instead let’s elect someone who has a proven track record of dealing with complex issues, who listens, who values expertise, who puts in the time to educate himself on the town’s needs and who will make decisions based on the most upto- date information available.
Please vote for Tom Curran for the Holden Board of Selectmen.
Jane Dye
Holden
Cooley, Newton endorsement
We live in difficult and dangerous times. Holden has been traditionally valued by families for the quality of life and quality of education. Both are in grave danger. The MBTA ruling is aimed to put huge building projects in town without even asking us. The quality of education is falling, the school district budget has gone up by 6.5% this time, and the school committee has involved itself in nothing but bureaucratic games and rubber stamping — except for the passing of the divisive and harmful DEI policy and removing Columbus Day from the district calendars.
Steve Cooley served in the military and law enforcement; he is a patriot and a man of tremendous common sense. His approach to matters is very practical, and anybody who attended or watched the Board of Selectmen meetings where he regularly makes comments know that he is dedicated to preserving and improving the quality of life and prosperity of Holden. At the same time, his opponent says that any negative effects of the MBTA policy are OK just because they will not happen overnight. He is an ideologue who is in favor of the DEI policy but does not provide practical leadership in the matters that are of vital importance to the town of Holden. I am confident that Steve Cooley will deliver the leadership that we desperately need today.
Judy Newton has successfully served as a School Committee member in the past, and she is an expert in financial matters. Judy is dedicated to improving the quality of education and putting our children first. She will not be content with just sitting on the committee and listening to endless reports. There is no doubt that she will work on practical projects that will have an actual practical positive effect. Judy will make sure that the voice of the parents is heard, and that our school district is financially sustainable.
I am calling on everybody to vote for Steve Cooley and Judy Newton, the real leaders who will bring a real positive change.
George Kaminski
Holden
