I think we would have been much father down the independent home road by now, had we had listened to Edison instead of Westinghouse. It's also interesting to listen to people talk about production & distribution yet you hardly ever hear them talk about efficient energy usage.
We have the ability to bring a home out of the ground with energy usage, comfort & safety as the main goals. However sadly we always seem to allow other factors to influence the end product and control many parts of our lives, vs us controlling the end product from concept to completion. Sadly the easy way seems to be the human way. However up front costs are most always cheaper for life cycle vs back side.
Not being prepared for many of life's what if's, can be costly, painful, or deadly depending the If.
One man has major investments in his own backup & redundant power systems, water & food stores. Another has a motor cycle, boat, camper, jet ski, & other toys. Both see the folly of the other, until the, If's, come calling. Depending on others to provide for your comfort & safety is an interesting train of thought to some.