Ever heard the saying “bright as a burnt out light bulb?” Well, it seems that Ron Paul and about 20 other GOP House members seem to have nothing else to do but to take on the hard issues that are addressing this country, and with so many problems to choose from, they have decided to take on the biggest threat first.
Ron Paul and his GOP buddies want to repeal the phaseout of the incandescent light bulbs that’s suppose to start next year.
Ironically, GOP President George W. Bush signed the bill into law to phase out incandesent bulbs in 2007. Chief sponsors were Reps. Jane Harman, D-Calif., and Fred Upton, R-Mich., who now chairs the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
Freedom Action, “a web-based group founded in 2009 by political activists at the Center for Competitive Enterprise,” thinks the ban oversteps government’s role in energy-efficiency and energy stability, USA TODAY reports.
“The light bulb ban is an outrageous government limitation on consumer choice and intrusion into the home of every American,” Myron Ebell, the group’s director said in a statement. “There is overwhelming public support that spans the political spectrum for repealing the ban on incandescent light bulbs.”
Really?
USA TODAY actually found that most Americans support this incandescent light bulb phase out.
“Nearly three of four U.S. adults, or 71%, say they have replaced standard light bulbs in their home over the past few years with compact fluorescent lamps or LEDs (light emitting diodes) and 84% say they are ‘very satisfied’ or ‘satisfied’ with the alternatives,” a survey of over 1,000 U.S. adults found.
Manufacturers will no longer be able to make the 100-watt Thomas Edison bulb after Jan. 1, 2012, followed by the 75-watt version in Jan. 2013 and the the 60- and 40-watt bulbs in Jan. 2014.
Most power companies are encouraging customers to use the more efficient compact fluorescent lamps or CFLs, since the grids in the United States are being strained above their capacity. I guess if Ron Paul would somehow become president, then we could expect to see more of these useless repeals.
“Waste is worse than loss. The time is coming when every person who lays claim to ability will keep the question of waste before him constantly. The scope of thrift is limitless,” Thomas Edison said. Hint, hint..
Read More: USA Today
Photo Credit: zetson via Flickr
Sign up for daily news updates from CleanTechnica on email. Or follow us on Google News!
Have a tip for CleanTechnica, want to advertise, or want to suggest a guest for our CleanTech Talk podcast? Contact us here.
Former Tesla Battery Expert Leading Lyten Into New Lithium-Sulfur Battery Era — Podcast:
I don't like paywalls. You don't like paywalls. Who likes paywalls? Here at CleanTechnica, we implemented a limited paywall for a while, but it always felt wrong — and it was always tough to decide what we should put behind there. In theory, your most exclusive and best content goes behind a paywall. But then fewer people read it! We just don't like paywalls, and so we've decided to ditch ours. Unfortunately, the media business is still a tough, cut-throat business with tiny margins. It's a never-ending Olympic challenge to stay above water or even perhaps — gasp — grow. So ...
