Monday, April 06, 2009

My relationship with the CFL's of the world

Today I share with you some thoughts not about my third favorite pigskin sporting organzation (the CFL known as the Canadian Football League--LOVE those Edmonton Eskimos), but the CFL known as Compact Fluorescent Lights. I am not one to agree with George Will on much. He's an intelligent man who shares my love for baseball and writing--but I often want to scream at him when I read his columns.

Will confirms some of my own observations and feelings regarding CFL bulbs and the misplaced frenzy to incorporate them in our lives. Though Will disagrees with the notion of earthly environmental distress, he still works to dismantle actions taken to address that distress--in this case the foolishness of the incorporation of CFL bulbs by law. I think the basic industriousness of people and a desire to act in the face of an anxious situation has produced foolish actions in a love fest with CFL bulbs. For some households and businesses, these lights may make sense. However, my household is occupied by 2 Tasmanian Devil-like children and a dim bulb of a dog who often has no real understanding of his surroundings. Not to mention I have been known to attempt to swing a golf club in my own house. The likelihood of a broken bulb in my household is high. This is not good for a product containing mercury. I have enough worries about my children and their exposure to neuro-toxins; CFL's only add to my madness. It seems like the tradeoff isn't all that good in the first place, and here we are, mandating these kinds of products in to law. The disposability of the CFL's don't seem to enter in to the conversation about environmental impact. I'm not sure why.

I have much higher hopes for some LED style bulbs, but it seems like CFL's are the flavor of the month. I hope the mercury issue will enter into the discussion more often, and I'm thankful that Will continued to direct this toward the mainstream, even if I believe his enviromental discourse is off.

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