A Way Forward on Data Centers

Over the past few years, public acceptance of data centers has plunged. An April survey from The Washington Post found almost 60 percent of Virginians oppose construction, up from less than 25 percent three years ago. A recent poll in Pennsylvania reported 16 percent of respondents would accept a nearby data center. A Reuters poll from June found similar numbers nationally, with 14 percent approving.

This backlash is affecting politics. Half of Festus, Missouri’s city council lost re-election after approving a local data center project. Iowa gubernatorial candidate Zach Lahn won his primary over a Trump-backed opponent after promising a data center moratorium. Other politicians, not wishing to wait for the fallout, have taken action to ban them entirely.

Some concerns are aesthetic: people do not want unappealing data centers being built nearby. Others are simply skeptical of AI and the new technological capabilities associated with it, something which also explains the recent trend of attacks on Flock cameras.

Read more at American Intelligence.