Coming soon to a province near you.
What's next? A National Light Bulb Registry?
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Friday Update: A voice of sanity from the Star of all places!!! - Banning light bulbs not such a bright idea.
Thursday, April 19, 2007
How many Queen's Park idiots does it take to ban a lightbulb?
Ugh. The Nanny State Of Ontario has just announced a ban on the sale of incandescent bulbs and other inefficient lighting technologies by 2012. Apparently that wasn't even earlier enough for the opposition parties.
Coming soon to a province near you.
What's next? A National Light Bulb Registry?
Coming soon to a province near you.
What's next? A National Light Bulb Registry?
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60 comments:
Another massive bureacracy will be need to regulate the lightbulbs. Its all about spending our money as fast as they can. In this case at the speed of light.
Dr. Roy, I wonder if we'll be able to smuggle them in from neighbouring provinces or states? Extra work for border guards.
That's funny. there was a black market in flush toilets in the states , when regulations were brought in for low flow models. Maybe the same thing will happen with lightbulbs
Read about here.
maybe we will have to pay a 20 cent deposit on the bulbs and return the burned out ones to the Beer Store for a refund.
Anon - Brilliant!! lol!
oh come on, surely there are more important things to be worrying about?!!!! Maybe the government will open up their own "state run monoploy" that sells the proper bulbs with a nice tax on them. Maybe even a light bulb swat team - I wonder what the jail time will be for repeat offenders?
I have those spiral low wattage bulbs in my house now and it says on the package that they are not recommended for use outdoors. I bet the governemnt didn't think of this, did it? Does that mean that there will be more people in the dark than usual in Ontario? Perhaps just the politicians...
It's going to be cold and dark in the winter. Really dark. The flourescent bulbs don't work when it's below -15 or -20 celsius.
and they are forcing us to pay $3 a bulb!
Another Liberal attempt at 'appearing' to be so totally on top of the enviro issues. What a joke!How easy to make a new 'law' and they don't respect other laws(Caledonia anyone?)
Wonder what the uniform for the Light-Bulb Cop will look like? And let's give them a name with an appropriate acronym:
Dalton's Incandescent Bulb Smashers
DIBS
Vicki
Well I'd say the voters of Ontario have an opportunity to send a CLEAR message to the politicians!
This is exactly the kind of thing to get on top of and let the dimbulbs of all the parties know what you think of their foolish meddling.
Heh, I didn't know I wasn't supposed to use the fluorscent ones outside. I put a few in my front door sconces back in January, and I haven't had a problem. Then again, I live in Vancouver, and don't see the sub zero temperatures a lot.
I don't necessarily think this law is a bad thing. Yeah, the bulbs are $3 apiece, but they last 5 times as long, and they will save you money on your electric bill.
They don't need to send in the cops to enforce a ban, just prevent stores from selling them. After a couple of years, everyone will be using the other kind, end of story.
You guys sound like the old fogeys who freaked out when they brought in Metric. Oh no! The world's coming to an end! Something is changing! Come on, people. You know there are more important things to fight over than light bulbs.
Carolyn Gardner is having trouble leaving comments on my blog. She wanted to add the following:
I find it interesting that at one time Mackenzie King would refer to
Socialist politicians as "Liberals in a hurry." Now it seems that it is the Liberals who are "Socialists in a hurry."
Well said, Carolyn!
shane...it's not the 'changing bulbs' that irks me ...it's the 'law' part.We've been using them for awhile...not really sure that they last 5 times longer.
An Old Fogie
shane...it's not the 'changing bulbs' that irks me ...it's the 'law' part
Exactly. Why do we need laws for this kind of thing? Allow the market to come up with green alternatives that actually work and are well-tested. Then people will buy them because they save money.
At the present time there are many places where the new bulbs don't work.
Also, as I just discussed with my mother, California and Australia are leading the way on this, but guess what?
Much warmer climate!!! No sub-arctic temps. D'uh!!!!
they work ok outdoors in sub-zero temps in CLOSED fixtures.
I bought them , I like them, because I'm cheap and electricity is damn expensive in Ontario.
But it's typical Liberal behaviour to take a good idea and force it on everyone in a law.
They take several minutes to warm up in cold weather, but even at -20 they do work.
Probably the ban will end up as a tax, so that the old type bulbs will be available for the situations that need them. But simply taxing them ends up looking like the old problem of taxing cigarettes instead of banning them (since they are bad for you). So they announce with a ban and implement as a tax.
A ban also makes it easier to mandate them for government purchasing.
apart from the echo chamber that is the conservative blogosphere, the world becomes an increasingly lonelier place for those who refuse to accept responsibility for their reckless consumerism.
as we watch north americans slowly eat themselves to death, it should come as know surprise to any thoughtful individual that legislation is the only way to force the slothful consumer to change his/her ways.
...wherein jeff davidson becomes first in line as The 'Enforcer', captain of the DIBS....
it should come as know surprise to any thoughtful individual that legislation is the only way to force the slothful consumer to change his/her ways.
Should we ban food too?
No, but perhaps establishing hefty user fees for health care dollar consuming hefty Canadians would be an idea.
Unless you are ill, there is absolutely no excuse for sloth and gluttony.
Oh, and buy the bulbs. It's a good thing.
They are trying to interfere right now Joanne with transfat 'laws'.
It isn't about the food or the lightbulbs...it is silly that Libs want to legislate a utopia in to existence....a lawyers dream come true.
Vicki
Lazlov: "No, but perhaps establishing hefty user fees for health care dollar consuming hefty Canadians would be an idea."
... or maybe just let us pay for our own healthcare with our own dollars if we so choose.
but that would be so un-Communist, er un-Canadian, wouldn't it?
JD: " ... that legislation is the only way to force the slothful consumer to change his/her ways"
right. we're too stoopid to make decisions for ourselves. better that we put those decisions in the hands of the likes of Stefan "it's hard to make prioities" Dion, and Garth "this year's party is ???" Turner.
I think what is needed is a national light bulb registry.
Since the thread is already OT ...
Anyone notice that the OPP officers group from Caledonia is Suing Garry McHale?
Just another travesty from the land of McQuinty.
I say this with concern and Without malice for the innocent victims of The Marxist Socialist Republic of Ontario!
Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress....But then I repeat myself.
-Mark Twain
Has anyone wondered how well these new bulbs will work in your oven or in your freezer. How about all those lamps where the shade snaps over the light bulb. It was mentioned that an ordinary bulb uses 5% of the energy for light and the other 95% goes up in heat (which by the way, I'm dubious about). But if that is the case, one must note that lights are normally on when it's dark outside and the temperatures therefore cooler (especially in Northern Ontario). So a little heat from a light bulb is not necessarily a waste of energy but a welcome side effect.
Since the thread is already OT ...
Anyone notice that the OPP officers group from Caledonia is Suing Garry McHale?
PGP - I was going to do a post about this but I was afraid Fantino would sue me. So I'll just shut up like a good little Ontario lemming.
""I was going to do a post about this but I was afraid Fantino would sue me. So I'll just shut up like a good little Ontario lemming.""
So their ploy is working!
For shame ......
I was thinking that the residents of Caledonia should be pursuing a class action suit and include the OPP Brass as well as The AG's ofc and McSquinty!
Or did they? Did that die off or languish.....??
In any case there is LOTS of room for airing this issue out!
How about Fantino's apparent threats to Caledonian officials re refusing to honour their obligation to provide police services??
In any case there is LOTS of room for airing this issue out!
How about Fantino's apparent threats to Caledonian officials re refusing to honour their obligation to provide police services??
You'll have to take up the cause and liberate us, PGP!
How about all those lamps where the shade snaps over the light bulb.
Anon, that is exactly the problem I ran into. I bought a whole pack from Costco, and ran home to use them. Then I realized how few fixtures could actually accommodate them. Some major R&D required.
and they are forcing us to pay $3 a bulb!
Actually, I just converted my entire student house to energy effecient light bulbs and it cost me less than $35.
We have a bulb exhange program on campus, which was started by a friend of mine. You bring in your old bulbs and they give you new ones at half the cost. I would suspect that the government will do the same.
I think its an execellent idea.
Zac
You bring in your old bulbs and they give you new ones at half the cost. I would suspect that the government will do the same.
Zac, that kind of incentive is great. I just resent more laws; more bans. Maybe I'm a Libertarian at heart.
Joamme(TB) is begining to see the light.
Swift, that is funny on so many levels.
no dim bulbs on this blog...
jeff davidson said..."apart from the echo chamber that is the conservative blogosphere, the world becomes an increasingly lonelier place for those who refuse to accept responsibility for their reckless consumerism."
Gee, Jeff... Does that mean you're going to stop selling your pictures?
If the conservative blogosphere can be described as an echo chamber, the liberal blogosphere is best described as a dysfunctional septic tank... full to overflowing and poisoning everything around it.
the liberal blogosphere is best described as a dysfunctional septic tank... full to overflowing and poisoning everything around it.
Gee, Mac... it is little wonder you right-wingers get branded with the Nazi poker when you can fire off lines that sound like they came straight from their play book.
Hel-lo, Joanne.
Zac, that kind of incentive is great. I just resent more laws; more bans. Maybe I'm a Libertarian at heart.
Joanne, perhaps that is the case, but there are tons of products that are banned. Stephen Harper recently accounced the banning of a long list of chemicals which are doing us harm. A great step also, in my estimation.
I view this as the same thing. These old lightbulbs are unneccesary. Energy efficient ones are coming down in price, they will help us save energy, lower our electricity bills, and lower green house gasses. Why not?
Zac
the liberal blogosphere is best described as a dysfunctional septic tank... full to overflowing and poisoning everything around it.
Don't hold back Mac. Tell us what you really think.
When did you turn so nasty? Bad day, perhaps?
Zac
Hel-lo Om-mar...
Zac and I would like to know why your blog is by invitation only.
Zac, I see a world of difference between banning harmful chemicals and banning light bulbs! Admittedly, if I ingest a light bulb, that could be harmful.
If I ingest cleaning fluids, that could hurt me too. Where do we stop?
Zac, I see a world of difference between banning harmful chemicals and banning light bulbs!
Granted they are different, but the principle of banning products is the same. It is for the benefit of consumers. If we ban these old inefficient light bulbs people will save money and clean up our environment. It's win/win.
Zac
Well Zac, let's hope by that time, they have solved the problem of the new ones not working with dimmer switches, with certain lampshades, etc.
let's hope by that time, they have solved the problem of the new ones not working with dimmer switches, with certain lampshades, etc.
They have those already, I've seen them at Home Depot.
Zac
Zac - For the dimmer switches or the lamps?
Dimmer switches. The lamp shade thing is a bit more trickier.
Zac
Lord Omar, have you forgotten that Hitler and his Nazis were leftwingers? I didn't think so. Did you have fun reading their playbook?
Zac, sorry if I offended you... and yes, it wasn't a great day.
Dimmer switches. The lamp shade thing is a bit more trickier.
Thanks, Zac. I'm going to check that out.
Now I'll rename this post: How many Queen's Park idiots does it take to screw a lampshade on a CFL?
Aside from my dislike for authoritarian actions (ie: banning bulbs) I wonder how the people who cannot afford those expensive compact fluorescent bulbs are going to manage? Then there's the concerns about the mercury which CF bulbs contain.
have you forgotten that Hitler and his Nazis were leftwingers?
nice try, Hermann.
Zac and I would like to know why your blog is by invitation only.
there is a small admission charge now, Joanne. if interested you can join through Paypal. you could think of it as a tithing.
Omar - How's business? Getting a good turnout?
It's raining yen! ;-)
lol! Good one.
I wonder how the people who cannot afford those expensive compact fluorescent bulbs are going to manage?
They've come down in price significantly and the government will most likely be doing an exchange program.
Zac
It doesn't matter how you slice it......now that the government is directly involved in lighting, the cost will go up.
I guess Baird is also an idiot for trying to ban Canada's incandescent lightbulbs! Save the incandescent lightbulbs!
http://savethelightbulbs.googlepages.com
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