For our customers' convenience ...

It's been pretty interesting watching how Detroit Edison has handled the closing of its customer service office in Monroe .. or in other cities for that matter. The company has ordered up a batch of closings of customer service offices because they say it reflects the preferences of their customers. Translation: Fewer customers are making payments in person and more are using the Internet and although a lot fewer are using the Internet than making payments in person, it's clearly a trend and anyway it's a whole lot cheaper just to shut down the in-person offices. Not to worry. The friendly utility will set up alternative pay stations so deadbeats who still want to pay in person can drive their horse and buggy to the Kroger store and pay there. Problem is, Kroger didn't know anything about it and was turning away tons of people who were showing up to pay their bills in person. In the paper, Edison called it a miscommunication. We'll say. What really wasn't communicated very well is that even if you could pay at Kroger, they'd charge something like $2.50 as a processing fee. Do ya think the money goes to the merchant who's handling the payment. No way. About 2 percent goes to the merchant. The rest goes to the electric company. It all makes sense doesn't it. You get less convenient service and you get to pay for it too. As they say in the electric business, there's a lot of stuff that goes on that's shocking.