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Wal-Mart Is Pushing Compact Fluorescent Bulbs
While we all know from reading the internets that Wal-Mart is irredeemably evil, the world's largest retailer has committed to get compact fluorescent lightbulbs into 100 million homes this year. CFLs are found in only 6% of households today. These energy-saving bulbs use 75% less electricity than incandescents and produce far less greenhouse gas to manufacture and use. Wal-Mart seems determined to use its marketing prowess to do what hasn't successfully been done in the CFL's 25-year history: to convince consumers to pay more upfront for large savings over the product's lifetime.
So they make lots of money up front on light bulbs—money they can invest and earn returns on—instead of a little money all along. Plus, if Wal-Mart uses their buying power to get these light bulbs for pennies on the dollar and make more money off of them at the cash register, plus get to use "We're environmentally friendly!" in their ads, they stand to greatly profit from this move.
I'm not seeing how this makes them any less evil. If they sell the bulbs for less profit, then I'd say maybe a little less evil. (Which I assume they're not, correct me if I'm wrong. TFA is a registration site.)
It seems to me that the only people who are less evil are the people spending a lot of money up front to buy the bulbs, not the store that's selling them. And even then, since the bulbs are cheaper to use in the long run, even that's debatable. I switched to these bulbs throughout my house years ago, and I've never had to replace one, and my power bill went down pretty dramatically.
"They're doing this for the environment."
See if you say that after all those Wal-Mart-shopping peckerwoods start using their burnt-out fluorescent bulbs for shootin' practice and that mercury starts piling up in Booger Creek.
This is evil because CFLs contain mercury. Walmart will primarly be selling them to people who are to uninformed, irresponsible or just too lazy to dispose of them properly. Thus, Walmart through this action will serve to increase the amount of mercury in our water tables.
cat
You're pretty dense. You can't even read. Here's a cost-benefit analysis of what _I_ proposed:
1. Don't have to buy four new lamps just because you want more light: At least $80 savings. More if you don't like lamps and would have an electrician mount fixtures.
2. Put in a 65 watt CF instead = your time and space saved
Procrastination -- because good things come to those who wait.