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It could be the breakthrough that finally has consumers warming to the energy-saving light bulb. A version that brightens up instantly, costs just 88p a year to run and lasts up to 25 years has gone on sale in Britain for the first time. The only catch is that the new LED bulb will cost £30.

The man responsible for the Europe-wide ban on traditional light bulbs can be revealed as a former Soviet Communist party member from Latvia. Andris Piebalgs, 51, the European Commissioner for Energy, leads the team which drafted the controversial regulations that will see all incandescent bulbs phased out by 2012. Far from being a faceless bureaucrat, Mr Piebalgs has waged a public war against opponents of the ban, mocking their stance and accusing them of being “resistant to change”. Five UK MEPs – including representatives of Sinn Fein, Plaid Cymru, Labour and the Liberal Democrats – endorsed the policy in a...

Energy Savings: Europe's ban on the incandescent light bulb began phasing in this month, and the U.S. will soon follow. Is Thomas Edison to blame for global warming? And why are we exporting green jobs?When the warm-mongers assemble in Copenhagen this December to hammer out a successor to the failed Kyoto Protocol, no doubt their work to save the earth from the carbon dioxide that gives it life will take place under the eerie light thrown off by compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) mandated by the European Union to fight climate change. The bulbs are more expensive, costing up to...

All of our 75 million senior citizens tossed under the ObamaCare bus have one more reason to storm the town hall meetings. Once Obama's death panels get to work seniors won't live long enough to enjoyof the energy savings they have been promised to break even from buying higher priced CFLs instead of using energy hog incandescent lightbulbs . Retailers like Lowes, Home Depot and Walmart will soon have Health and Human Services government mortality tables displayed in their lightbub aisles alongside info on lumens and lightbulb life. Typically CFLs cost four to six times as much as incandescents but...

Return to the Article September 03, 2009Obama's Death Panels to Unravel Lightbulb SavingsBy Luminus Maximus All of our 75 million senior citizens tossed under the ObamaCare bus have one more reason to storm the town hall meetings. Once Obama's death panels get to work seniors won't live long enough to enjoyof the energy savings they have been promised to break even from buying higher priced CFLs  instead of using energy hog incandescent lightbulbs . Retailers like Lowes, Home Depot and Walmart will soon have Health and Human Services government mortality tables displayed in their lightbub aisles alongside info on...

Shoppers are stockpiling traditional light bulbs while they still have the chance. An EU ban comes into force on Tuesday making it illegal for retailers and wholesalers to import most of the old-style bulbs. It means once stocks have run out, the only ones available will be the more pricey, low energy variety. Roger King, who runs Hampton Hill Hardware in Middlesex, said: “I’ve taken orders this week for quantities in the 50s and 100s.” “People don’t like being told what to do for a start. Many are concerned that they are not going to be able to see properly...

The incandescent light bulb has only two years to live. As part of the 2007 Energy bill, the bulbs must be phased out between 2012 and 2014. And the bill is already having a negative effect on American Industry: Last month, GE announced it will close the Winchester Bulb Plant 80 miles west of D.C. As a result, 200 men and women will lose their jobs. GE is also shuttering incandescent factories in Ohio and Kentucky, axing another 200 jobs. GE blamed environmental regulations for the closing. The first paragraph of the company’s July 23 press release explained: “A variety...

Energy saving light bulbs are not as bright as their traditional counterparts and claims about the amount of light they produce are "exaggerated", the European Union has admitted.Soon they will be the only kind of light bulb allowed, but now officials in Brussels have admitted that energy-saving bulbs are not as bright as the old-fashioned kind they are replacing.Soon they will be the only kind of light bulb allowed, but now officials in Brussels have admitted that energy-saving bulbs are not as bright as the old-fashioned kind they are replacing. From tomorrow a Europe-wide ban on traditional incandescent bulbs will...

WINCHESTER, VA--“Government did us in,” says Dwayne Madigan, whose job will terminate when General Electric closes its factory next July. Madigan makes a product that will soon be illegal to sell in the U.S. - a regular incandescent bulb. Two years ago, his employer, GE, lobbied in favor of the law that will outlaw the bulbs. Madigan’s colleagues, waiting for their evening shift to begin, all know that GE is replacing the incandescents for now with compact fluorescents bulbs, which GE manufactures in China. Last month, GE announced it will close the Winchester Bulb Plant 80 miles west of D.C....

Energy-saving lightbulbs are inferior in quality to the traditional models covered by the European Union ban. If you have missed this story, it is probably because you have been reading your daily newspaper in such poor light that you have given up the struggle. Since January 1 this year, when leading retailers announced a voluntary ban on stocking traditional 100-watt incandescent light bulbs, those glorious domestic globes with their Rubens-esque curves, the lights have been going out all over Britain. And life is about to be a whole lot darker. From September 1, shops will no longer be able to...

The public have been asked to 'snoop' on shopkeepers who continue to sell traditional light bulbs banned by Europe. From September 1, it will be illegal to import conventional pearl or frosted bulbs of any shape or wattage. Traditional incandescent bulbs of 100 watts will also be banned under European law aimed at reducing energy bills and carbon dioxide emissions. They will be replaced by energy saving lights, which usually use flourescent tubes, but it is thought some consumers will still prefer their 'traditional' bulbs, particularly for reading lamps. There is evidence of people hoarding the old fashioned bulbs around...

Comments on this story (22) THE CANADIAN PRESS General Electric Corp. is shutting down a light bulb manufacturing plant in Oakville with the loss of about 180 jobs. The company said late today that the work will be shifted to other GE plants and also subcontracted to outside suppliers over the next year. The unit, GE Consumer & Industrial, informed its employees at the plant just west of Toronto earlier in the day. The plant makes incandescent, fluorescent and halogen light bulbs. It employs 160 hourly production workers and 20 salaried employees. The factory floor workers are represented by Local...

The staggered phase out of energy-wasting light bulbs begins on Sept. 1 in Germany. The unpopularity of the energy-saving compact fluorescent bulbs that will replace them is leading consumers and retailers to start hoarding the traditional bulbs. As the Sept. 1 deadline for the implementation of the first phase of the EU's ban on incandescent light bulbs approaches, shoppers, retailers and even museums are hoarding the precious wares -- and helping the manufacturers make a bundle. The EU ban, adopted in March, calls for the gradual replacement of traditional light bulbs with supposedly more energy-efficient compact fluorescent bulbs (CFL). The...

Just 18% of adults think it’s the government’s job to tell Americans what kind of light bulb they use, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. Seventy-two percent (72%) say it’s none of the government’s business, and 10% are not sure. The federal government under an energy bill passed in 2007 is requiring consumers to dump incandescent bulbs, the ones we’ve used for well over a century, for more expensive incandescent ones. The plan is scheduled to go into effect over the next 10 years in the name of great energy efficiency. Eighty-three percent (83%) of Republicans and...

The Department of Energy and Climate Change admits that it is "concerned" at the mailings – described yesterday by campaigners as a waste – and has agreed to ban them. But it has decided not so do so for another six months to allow even more of the bulbs to be sent out - even though every home in the country has already, on average, received at least eight of them. Experts believe that vast numbers of the compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) bulb are stored away, never to be used, and thrown out to end up in landfill, where they...

Al Gore’s campaign against global warming is shifting into high gear. Reporters and commentators follow his every move and bombard the public with notice of his activities and opinions. But while the mainstream media promote his ideas about the state of planet Earth, they are mostly silent about the dramatic impact his economic proposals would have on America. And journalists routinely ignore evidence that he may personally benefit from his programs. Would the romance fizzle if Gore’s followers realized how much their man stands to gain? Earlier this year Gore experienced a notable public relations debacle. The Tennessee Center for...

Sir, the candle is in full compliance with the new Cap and Trade law prohibiting bright light bulbs, but the water bottles are a felony. Please come with us.

WASHINGTON -- Aiming to keep the focus on climate change legislation, President Barack Obama put a plug in for administration efforts to make lamps and lighting equipment use less energy. "I know light bulbs may not seem sexy, but this simple action holds enormous promise because 7 percent of all the energy consumed in America is used to light our homes and businesses," the president said, standing alongside Energy Secretary Steven Chu at the White House.

The running joke [me - it's a real knee slapper] in Washington is that nobody has read the 900-plus-page energy bill sponsored by Reps. Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.) and Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), which the House will consider in coming weeks. . . . In fact, the bill also contains regulations on everything from light bulb standards to the specs on hot tubs, and it will reshape America's economy in dozens of ways that many don't realize. Here is just one: The bill would give the federal government power over local building codes.

The social engineering spin of the green mindset dictates that we should buy ‘green' cars, divert food crops to fuel them, restrict air travel and ban plasma TVs and, of course, traditional light-bulbs. So let's take a closer look at the current green-led switchover: the dimly-lit realities behind ‘green' light bulbs. Back to the ‘dark ages' In the US, Republican Jane Harman (D-Calif.) introduced legislation aimed at setting a target date of 2012 to ban the sale of traditional incandescent light-bulbs, switching America over to low-energy alternatives. After all, low-energy "compact fluorescent bulbs" (CFLs) use just one-fifth of the energy...

Ordinary light bulbs are supposed to disappear in the next few years as exotic new lighting technologies become common. Much of our electricity will be generated by wind and sun. Car fuel will be extracted from trees and grass. So lawmakers have mandated. Now President Obama has proposed a new energy initiative, one of the most ambitious in decades, that would require the average car to get 40 percent more miles on each gallon. At least, that’s what is supposed to happen. But as the ups and downs of the nation’s energy policy have demonstrated over the last 35 years,...

Walk around the floor of Lightfair International, the lighting industry’s annual trade show at the Javits Center in New York last week, and you would be forgiven for thinking that lamps based on light-emitting diodes, or LEDs, had already filled our homes and workplaces. LED bulbs and fixtures dominated nearly every booth on the show floor. Now all the world has to do is catch up. Most people think of LEDs as the lights blinking from inside electronic devices. They are being used increasingly to light rooms, though few people have ever bought them. “In the U.S., 78 percent of...

WHEN British consumers are compelled to buy energy-efficient lightbulbs from 2012, they will save up to 5m tons of carbon dioxide a year from being pumped into the atmosphere. In China, however, a heavy environmental price is being paid for the production of “green” lightbulbs in cost-cutting factories. Large numbers of Chinese workers have been poisoned by mercury, which forms part of the compact fluorescent lightbulbs. A surge in foreign demand, set off by a European Union directive making these bulbs compulsory within three years, has also led to the reopening of mercury mines that have ruined the environment. Doctors,...

Now frosted lightbulbs are to be banned by EU in favour of energy-savers ... The EU is banning every type of opaque 'incandescent' bulb from September, from the conventional 100 and 60 watt 'pearl' bulbs to the more specialised frosted 25 watt and 40 watt bulbs shaped like candles and golf balls. At the same time clear 100 watt bulbs will also vanish. Instead, shoppers will have to buy low energy compact fluorescent lamps (CFL) or low energy halogen bulbs. Change: Traditional frosted bulbs (left) are to be replaced by energy-saving bulbsThe rest of the clear bulbs will be phased...

How many people does it take to change every light bulb in Grand Central Terminal? Six, it turns out. And it’s a full-time job. On Tuesday, those wiremen — their official title — unscrewed the last remaining incandescent bulbs in the building, replacing them with compact fluorescent bulbs and completing the greening of the lighting system at the bustling station. While the wiremen worked, photographers snapped pictures, and officials applauded the efforts, reminiscing about the days when both the station and the light bulb were young. The bulbs in question were on one of the 10 huge Beaux-Arts chandeliers in...

Now, amid a growing raft of legislation around the globe aimed at phasing out the standard incandescent light bulb (and in some corners, popular resistance to that idea), Mr. Brandston [an award-winning lighting designer] is stepping out of retirement and into the debate over energy-efficient lighting. Specifically, Mr. Brandston accuses “energy zealots” of using faulty science to determine the efficiency of light bulbs, and he says that simplistic lumens-per-watt comparisons obscure questions of how well different bulbs do what they’re supposed to do: light up a room. The government, manufacturers and efficiency advocates, in pushing the adoption of compact fluorescents,...

TUNBRIDGE WELLS, England — On a quaint lane called Camden Street, the sidewalk easel stands out for its apocalyptic tone: “100-WATT BULBS IN STOCK. (FOR HOW LONG WE DO NOT KNOW)” “Let some government official come in and tell me I can’t sell these,” Jonathan Wright, who has owned Classic Lighting for 40 years, said defiantly as he surveyed his warren of upscale light fixtures and shelves filled with neatly stacked bulbs. “I’ll find them wherever I can get them and sell them for whatever they cost. People are buying in bulk because they want them.” Mr. Wright says that...

Remember all those TV segments and magazine articles that had a list of 10 things you can do to save the planet from the perils of global warming? More likely than not, one of things you were urged to do was to switch all you incandescent light bulbs to compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs). And, if you didn't heed their advice, the government's forcing you to through the legislative process. Congress banned the incandescent light bulbs in the energy bill signed into law by former President George W. Bush on Dec. 19, 2007, which increases efficiency standards and effectively bans traditional...

[A] lot of people these days are finding the new compact fluorescent bulbs anything but simple. Consumers who are trying them say they sometimes fail to work, or wear out early. At best, people discover that using the bulbs requires learning a long list of dos and don’ts. Take the case of Karen Zuercher and her husband, in San Francisco. Inspired by watching the movie “An Inconvenient Truth,” they decided to swap out nearly every incandescent bulb in their home for energy-saving compact fluorescents. Instead of having a satisfying green moment, however, they wound up coping with a mess. “Here’s...

The phasing out of traditional light bulbs could cause misery for thousands who have light-sensitive skin disorders, medical experts warned yesterday. Dr Robert Sarkany said some low-energy bulbs gave vulnerable people painful rashes and swelling. He backed calls by patient groups for the Government to give medical exemptions for those at risk. The warning comes as British shops start to clear their shelves of traditional bulbs, which are being replaced by more energy-efficient versions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

WHITTIER, Calif. - The California Highway Patrol says three men hijacked a truck hauling energy-efficient light bulbs and left the driver tied up on the side of the road. CHP Officer Joe Zizi says the hijacking happened early Wednesday in Whittier, about 25 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles.

February 2, 2009 Cambridge University researchers have developed cheap, light-emitting diode (LED) bulbs that produce brilliant light but use very little electricity. They will cost just GBP2 (USD2.80) and last up to 60 years. The gallium nitride based bulbs are 12 times more efficient than conventional tungsten incandescent bulbs and three times more efficient than compact fluorescent low-energy bulbs. As well as lasting 100,000 hours, ten times as long as today's eco-bulbs, the LED bulbs do not contain mercury, so disposal is less damaging to the environment, they do not flicker and fully illuminate instantly, unlike the current generation of...

Millions of Britons are finally waking up to the fact that their beloved light bulb will disappear for good after 120 years. Traditional 100-watt bulbs are vanishing from the High Street because of a controversial European Union decision. Yesterday panic buyers were snapping up the remaining bulbs in a last-ditch attempt to stockpile the final supplies. Hundreds of leading supermarkets and DIY chains - including Sainsbury's, Asda and Homebase - have already sold their last remaining bulbs after a surge in panic buying. Other stores say they have enough stocks to last until the end of next week. The supplies...

DETROIT -- A Detroit elementary school is asking for donations of toilet paper and light bulbs to keep their school functioning. The principal of the Academy of Americas sent a letter to staff, parents and partners asking for donations of items "that are of the utmost importance for proper school functioning and most importantly for student health and safety." In the letter, Principal Naomi Khalil cited budget constraints within the district as the reason why the school could no longer stock the items. The district is grappling with a more than $400 million budget deficit and is on the verge...

NCPA: Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs Not Worth Cost and Trouble Report Says Government Should Not Force CFLs on Consumers DALLAS (Dec. 10, 2008) - Although touted by many as the smart energy choice, compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs are not suitable for many common uses and should not be required by the government, according to a new report by the National Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA). The Environmental Protection Agency states that CFLs will reduce energy use and will last longer than standard bulbs. However, NCPA Senior Fellow and report co-author Sterling Burnett argues: "For many uses, compact fluorescent bulbs...

OSRAM SYLVANIA released a new national study today, demonstrating that 78 percent of Americans do not know of the federal legislation to phase out incandescent light bulbs. The "Socket Survey," is the first study to evaluate the awareness of and attitudes about energy-efficient lighting and the upcoming phase out. According to the poll, although most surveyed were not aware of the legislation that applies to incandescent bulbs: > The phase-out of the incandescent bulb was established through the 2007 Clean Energy Act. As part of the legislation, new efficiency standards for lighting will make a majority of inefficient light bulbs...

It's time to start reflecting on the past year, and I want to kick mine off with some admissions on places where I was flat wrong. Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs - boy, did I get on that train. When I found out that those little bulbs operated at roughly 1/3 the wattage of normal bulbs and they lasted for 5 years, I ran out and outfitted the entire house with them. I'm not some earth-worshiping, tree-hugging, enviro-nazi, by the way. I'm just a guy who loves technology, electronics, and efficiency, and who doesn't like to change light bulbs. One place...

Traditional light bulbs are to be banned from 2010, EU energy ministers have decided. The high energy filament bulbs are being phased out in order to improve energy efficiency and meet climate change targets. The switchover, which will affect all of the European Union's 500 million citizens, was first ordered at a Brussels summit last year as part of an ambitious energy policy to fight climate change. A meeting of EU energy ministers, including the UK's new secretary of state for energy and climate change Ed Miliband decided to go ahead with the ban. The move has previously proved controversial....

When it comes to light bulbs, the message has been blindingly clear. Environmentalists, energy experts, government agencies and pretty much everyone but the pope all say it’s high time you replaced your old incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent light bulbs, or CFLs. Last year, Congress passed a law banning incandescents by 2014. The long-lasting CFLs generate the same amount of light with less energy, thereby reducing greenhouse gas emissions and saving you money at the same time — and if you haven’t heard this pitch, it may be time for fresh batteries in your hearing aid. Away from the glowing...

How many Barack Obamas does it take to change a light bulb? It is not Barack Obama who will change the light bulb. We are the change our light bulb is waiting for. I'm saddened that the lightbulb burned out. This isn't the lightbulb I knew. How many Obama supporters does it take to change a light bulb? One to change the light bulb and thousands of others to scream "yes we can".

U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., and 24 other representatives on Capitol Hill have asked the government to reconsider mandating that all Americans use exclusively compact fluorescent bulbs, or CFLs, in light of growing concerns over the safety and environmental impact of the bulbs. As WND reported, the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 was signed into law in December, phasing out the use of traditional, incandescent light bulbs in favor of CFLs beginning in 2012 and culminating in a ban on incandescent bulbs in 2014. "Most Americans, if you ask them, have no idea that the government has already...

Every journalist in the land seems to be going ga-ga over the new "energy saver globe". This is the eco-friendly alternative to the devilish and grossly inefficient incandescent bulb. We are being incessantly told by our media mavens that the new alternative is cheaper in the long term than the old light bulb and that it will save just oodles and oodles of energy and that it would be irrational not to buy it. The funny thing is that Joe Public has to be mandated by arrogant politicians into buying the next best thing to sliced bread. Why is this...

Charismatic: Only 1 - Hands are already in the air. Pentecostal : 10 - One to change the bulb, and nine to pray against the spirit of darkness. Presbyterians: None - Lights will go on and off at predestined times. Roman Catholic: None - Candles only. Baptists: At least 15. One to change the light bulb, three committees to approve the change, and 11 to decide who brings the potato salad and fried chicken. Episcopalians: 3 - One to call the electrician, one to mix the drinks and one to talk about how much better the old one was. Mormons...

Researchers create mercury-absorbent container linings for broken CFLs Brown University engineering students Love Sarin (left) and Brian Lee display a nanoselenium-enriched cloth that can capture mercury vapor from broken compact fluorescent lamps. Brown has applied for federal patents covering the invention and plans soon to begin commercial negotiations. Credit: John Abromowski, Brown University With rising energy prices and greater concern over global warming, compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) are having a successful run. Sales of the curlicue, energy-sipping bulbs, which previously had languished since they were introduced in the United States in 1979, reached nearly 300 million last year. Experts expect...

WASHINGTON – Members of Congress are beginning to have second thoughts about the ban on incandescent light bulbs effective in 2014 as a result of an energy bill signed into law earlier this year. Rep. Ted Poe, R-Texas, says his objection is very basic – the Constitution doesn’t authorize Congress to do anything remotely like banning a product that has been used safely and efficiently for more than 100 years in favor of Chinese-imported compact fluorescent light bulbs that pose considerable health and safety risks. Extensive cleanup is required by the Environmental Protection Agency for simply breaking a bulb. When...

Republican congressman gives strong testomony before the house against the mandatory use of the CFL

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has documented that compact fluorescent light bulbs are not safe to use in some locations, and cleanup of broken fixtures can involve cutting out sections of carpeting that are contaminated with mercury. Now a property manager that operates facilities in Washington and Idaho is telling tenants under a new program it will replace all bulbs with CFLs, without any warning about their dangers. A spokesman at Rockwood Lodge Apartments in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, told WND that the new program is moving forward, although it is not mandatory. The apartment spokesman referred WND to the company's...

Ted Poe lamenting the end of the incandescent light bulb. Should be required viewing for all!

Broken Compact Fluorescent Causes Mercury PoisoningJune 13, 2008 BEGIN TRANSCRIPT RUSH: To Royse City, Texas. Jonathan, glad you called. Nice to have you here. CALLER: Yes, thank you. I admire you a lot, and I really love your program. RUSH: Thank you, sir, very, very, very, very much. CALLER: I just wanted to tell you about a little incident I had at work with these lightbulbs that all the Democrats and liberals are promoting saying they're better for everybody and -- RUSH: You're talking about the compact fluorescent lightbulbs. CALLER: That is correct. RUSH: What happened, were you mandated at...

New regulations are banning incandescent bulbs in the future. CFL fluorescent bulbs are recommended. But the EPA treats these bulbs like hazardous waste and has complex rules for disposing of them and procedures for clean-up if they break. Furthermore, ALL such bulbs are imported from - you guessed it - China. And we wonder why we have energy problems!