Now We See the Light

Pretty soon it will be illegal to sell incandescent light bulbs in the United States and throughout the European Union. GE, the biggest manufacturer of the compact fluorescent bulb that is replacing the old bulbs, lobbied for the change in the U.S. law (1). GE is winning in several ways:

1. They make more money per bulb over the old style of bulb.


2. They save on labor costs because the bulbs are made in China and not America.


3. They have no environmental regulations to work under because China does not have the laws the U.S. does.


4. They get to work under a single federal standard instead of several state standards.


5. They get points with the environmentalists for selling "green" bulbs.

GE is shedding 400 U.S. jobs, although it says it may make a better bulb in the future and bring those jobs back.

And now we find out from the European Union that the ratings given the bulbs are lies from the manufacturers. For example, an 11W CFL is said to be as bright as a 60W incandescent bulb when in reality it is a 15W CFL that is that bright (2).

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1. Carney, Timothy P (2009, August 28). "How GE's Green Lobbying Is Killing U.S. Jobs". The Washington Examiner.
Retrieved August 31, 2009, from The Washington Examiner.

2. Gray, Richard and Julia McWatt (2009, August 29). "Energy Saving Light Bulbs Offer Dim Future". Telegraph.
Retrieved August 31, 2009, from Telegraph.co.uk