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Will Femia is a Weblog enthusiast who, through good fortune and dumb luck, was introduced to the form as his position as chat producer for MSNBC.com careered into obsolescence. On any given day, Will can be found having already spent an unhealthy amount of time squinting at a computer screen.

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Wal-Mart to change world

Posted: Friday, September 01, 2006 4:33 AM by Will Femia

"For years, compact fluorescent bulbs have promised dramatic energy savings--yet they remain a mere curiosity. That's about to change."  This is an amazing example of Wal-Mart power.  I'm skeptical that Wal-Mart customers will be easily sold on an expensive light bulb, but it's staggering the kind of impact Wal-Mart can have with a relatively minor campaign like this.

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"To make each spiral, a Chinese worker wearing gloves"...great we can't even make these miracle bulbs in America, and in the process of saving billions of dollars many of the US incandescent bulb factories will be closed. More jobs to China, more money to Wal-Mart, less jobs in the USA...but think of the money you are going to save!

John Galt Pittsburgh PA (Sent Friday, September 01, 2006 6:48 PM)

it's funny.  my family have been using CFLs for years.  well about 3 to 3 1/2 to be precise.  all because of an article or tv show or something i saw a few years before that.

when the epiphany hit me, it was because i saw a sale of two 60 watt-equivalent CFL bulbs for almost 50% off and convinced my wife that we should try them.  the fact that they used 25% of the electricity even though they cost 10 times as much played into my argument.

today, she mentioned that we've had a 100watt and a 60 watt burning in a bathroom (off and on) since we bought them those few years ago.  well that was after i mentioned this linked article.  needless to say, she's convinced.

matt (Sent Friday, September 01, 2006 8:07 PM)

 I started buying these bulbs a few months ago and have seen my electric bill go down and haven't had to change one yet.

 9 in the house,15 to go.

 Good

 1.Lower electric bill

 2.Don't have to change bulbs

 3.Less CO2  


 Bad


 1.Made in China


 2.Where is all that mercury gonna end up?

Robert Jarvis Covington Va (Sent Wednesday, September 06, 2006 5:48 AM)

Better Idea in the works according to the news in the Toronto Star 2006-09-28, Group IV's bulbs — which produce light when an electric current passes through a piece of silicon — promise to produce high-quality white light and wouldn't be hot to the touch. They also wouldn't contain mercury, which creates a disposal challenge for today's compact fluorescent bulbs.

Jeff Trimm, Kitchener Ont. (Sent Thursday, September 28, 2006 8:50 AM)



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