wrote in message
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On Friday, January 25, 2013 6:57:44 AM UTC-5, wrote:
75 watt incandescent bulbs were banned on January 1 of this year.

I am so effing sick of this extremist rhetoric.

They're not coming to take your light bulbs any more than they're coming
to take your guns. Our Federal government is too broke and mired down in
its own dysfunction to go around kicking in doors and smashing light
bulbs, Elliott Ness style.

What's banned is the manufacture and importation of 75 watt incandescent
bulbs, except for special-use types (i.e. rough service, floodlights,
etc.).

You can still use existing 75 Watt bulbs. You can still buy them as long
as supplies hold out. A couple boxes of them will likely last you the rest
of your life, and your kids will be used to CFL's so they won't care.

Right on. The rants about government control are more than tiresome. In
the case of light bulbs, the legislation to phase them out started with the
energy advocates. They went to the Congressional staff of the House and
Senate Energy Committees and said that they wanted to regulate certain
inefficient light bulbs so that more efficient bulbs would be used. The
advocates had plenty of support - some utilities, other energy conservation
groups and lots of people who thought saving energy is a good idea. They
organized and took their message to Congress. Then Congress held hearings,
asked folks, including the light bulb manufacturers, what they thought and
the legislation was written. It must have been a fair process because no
one was happy with the results. I haven't found anyone involved who got
what they wanted. Then, the legislation went to Congress, was approved by
both houses and signed by President Bush in 2007. It kicked in 5 years
later - in 2012 with the phase out of the 100 watt bulb - and all of a
sudden the critics woke up and started complaining about government control.
Now, with the free market working, more bulb choices available than ever
before at about any price range that you want and with energy being saved
with all of them, I wonder just what the fuss is about and where critics
were when the laws were being debated.

Tomsic