Blackouts are certainly a thing, and for the middle class in USA that would be considered intolerable. However, for the poor in the USA who sometimes go without electricity for lack of payment, having access to healthcare and education in exchange for the occasional blackout might be worth the trade.

As for speaking out against the government, citizens may not be incarcerated for speaking out (unless it actually threatens the government such as Manning, Snowden, and Winner), other forms of control are used. Usually that means pervasive propaganda and pitting people against each other through the Culture War.