01 02 03 400 Things: Environmentally Unfriendly - Light Bulb Edition 04 05 15 16 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 31 32 33

Environmentally Unfriendly - Light Bulb Edition

34
I'm back with another proof that legislating climate change is nothing more than an attempt to grow government. Today's focus: the light bulb.
As you may have already heard, the good ol' incandescent light bulb, the one invented by Thomas Edison, will be outlawed beginning in 2012 by the Federal Government. The old-fashioned bulbs will be replaced by CFLs (Compact Fluorescent Lamps), because of their supposed energy efficiency. You know, the ones that look like a twirly, white snake? The claim is that the incandescent bulb is an environmental hazard.
Let's examine that claim for a moment.
What happens when you drop a regular bulb? It breaks. When it breaks, you sweep it up. Throw it in the garbage, and move on.
What happens when you drop a CFL? If it breaks, you must follow a series of steps to 'dispose of it properly.' You see, the bulb contains mercury, which is poisonous to humans. Here are the proper steps to follow (from the Australian Government):

The U.S. Government provides a handy list of supplies necessary for the proper cleanup of mercury spills:

The cleanup instructions provided with this list give more helpful info, that you'll want to read for a good laugh. It's especially funny when they suggest you hire a contractor with mercury screening equipment. Oh, and keep the windows open for 24 hours and don't let pets or children in that room. I hope you don't break a bulb in January.

If you live in Vermont, there's a helpful website listing approved recycling locations for CFLs. Important note: there's only one location in the state.

Here's some more enviro-hypocrisy:

Do you see the overload of hypocrisy in all of these facts? In the name of saving the environment we are purposefully releasing pollutants into the air and water, poisoning people, using more energy in production, using more disposable gloves, throwing away clean up brushes and glass jars. I thought we were supposed to recycle, go organic, and use less energy. Where's the common sense?

The use of mercury in cosmetics has been banned in the U.S. Mercury thermometers are almost non-existent. Mercury dental fillings have gone by the wayside. Using mercury as a preservative in childhood vaccinations is no longer the practice.

So why is it suddenly okay to mandate that we purchase only the light bulbs that contain mercury in every light fixture in our home?

Because it's not about light bulbs, or the negligible amount of energy they save. It's about the green movement, and it's about bigger government. The green movement, or the environmental movement, or the global warming movement, are all about saving everything except humans. We need to save the earth, save our natural resources, save the polar bears, and save the trees, and all at the expense of human health and life.

I hope you will go out and stockpile all the incandescent light bulbs you can find, send your CFLs to Vermont, and tell all of your green friends.

And in case you think I'm bashing Obama, think again. This legislation was passed in 2007 under George W. Bush. It just goes to show, we need to be ever vigilant to know what is happening in Congress, read the bills, and take a stand.

If you are appalled at this information, read my other Environmentally Unfriendly post, or all of my posts about Going Green.

Come back on Monday for my week-long, crazy-money-saving coupon tutorials. I will talk about the best ways to maximize coupons, how to clip and organize hundreds of coupons quickly, how to shop with coupons effectively, and much more!

Share


Search & Win

400 Things

Labels:

35 36 37 38