The Incandescent Light Bulb

From the start of this blog, and for more than 840 posts, I’ve been adamant that Great American Things should not have political content. Today’s post could easily violate that policy, but I’m not going to let it. Consider this, instead, a consumer alert.

Thomas Edison perfected the incandescent light bulb back in 1879. For nearly a century and a half, it’s lit our homes, businesses, and cities. It’s played an inestimable part of what America became. Now, thanks to United States Congress members who have decided it’s their right to micromanage our lives (oops), the 100-watt incandescent bulb will be unavailable for sale as of January 1, 2012. Others will be phased out in the next two years. Instead, you’ll have to buy either fluorescent bulbs, which contain dangerous mercury, or “more efficient” incandescents that cost about $1.75 each instead of about $.40.

So we’re replacing a pleasing, inexpensive, safe light source with a dim, expensive, potentially dangerous one. But there’s still a month to get the good ones, like right here.