[LINK] Here's one that will snag a few

[Craig Sanders]

On Tue, Feb 20, 2007 at 08:08:47PM +1100, Jan Whitaker wrote:
> >> they cause epileptic reactions and migraines in some people
> >
> >So do some incandescent lights.
> 
> Oh? how? do they have a frequency flicker like fluoros?

yes, of course they do.  50Hz.

> $.50/60w lamp vs $10/fluro lamp = 200 times. 

that's 20 times, not 200.

> Those are the figures 
> being used on the radio this morning. 

the radio people need a calculator too :)

> The fluro rep said the cheaper ones were less reliable than the more
> expensive ones for life of use.

ditto for incandescents.  cheap 50c lights last anywhere from a few weeks
to a few months.  $1-$3 incands. last a lot longer.  and compact flouros
last longer again (even the cheap ones).

> > Prove it. Show us the numbers. Until then it's just claim against
> > claim.  Assuming a 20W longlife replaces a 100W incandescent bulb,
> > it is directly saving 80%, or 80 cents in every dollar. Is that
> > outlandish? If so, how?
>
> Most of my lamps won't take a 100w lamp. All are rated for 60,
> including my ceiling fixtures.

so replace 60W incands with 15W compact flouros. you'll get about the
same light level.

> The claims by Turnbull today to the school kids was a savings of 60%  
> on power bills! That is rubbish. I'll use my house as an example. My  

of course it's rubbish. it's 60-80% of the *lighting* portion of the
electricity bill. which is a lot less then the TV, stereo, computer,
fridge, etc etc etc portion of the bill.

> last electric bill for 1 Aug to 1 Nov was $146, average of $49/month 
> even numbers. Is Turnbull really wanting us to believe that $36 of 
> that is electric lights, and only $13 is for everything else 
> including: TV, radio, computers, refrigeration, toaster, electric 
> drier, washing machine? Again, rubbish. Wait, he's probably talking 
> about his Vaucluse house with all the exterior security lights and 
> vanity lighting to keep the wife in vogue with the latest house 
> beautiful mags, not the real people of the place.

no, he's just being vague, ambiguous and easy to misinterpret. as almost
everyone (esp. politicians) selling a message tries to be.

> Oh, and my water use is also less than half of the average for a
> single person (77 v 154) according to Southeast water. Reason: I don't
> water the garden, ever, even before the restrictions went on.
>
> People can be efficient in their use of resources if they are taught
> to do so. Is it OK to have alternatives like fluoro lights? Of
> course! But don't sell it as the silver bullet to greenhouse gasses
> and forget that some people don't have Turnbull's income in order to
> make the change.

as you say, blaming the individual for using incandescents rather than
compact flouros is mistargetting the blame. it's a deliberate diversion
from the real problems (mostly inefficient use of energy in business
and especially industry)....same as the propaganda about having shorter
showers is a diversion to make residential users take the blame when
they only account for about 8-10% of all water usage (agriculture is
about 70%, industry accounts for the rest).

> There must be programs for exchange like in NSW to help with the
> transition AND compensation for those who are damaged either
> physically or re other things that stop working as a result of this
> change.

why?  if people are doing something that's wrong, then why should they be
entitled to compensation when they're stopped?

should a thief be entitled to compensation when they're prevented from
thievery?  should some huge corporation be compensated when they're prevented
from polluting the local river?

screw 'em. and screw the farmers too, they don't deserve compensation
for water "rights" - they've had a good run on the public purse, they
should just STFU and hope people forget how their rorting of the system
for decades has resulted in the environmental disaster that is our river
system.

> I stand by what I ended with. It was policy on the run (again).

it's not policy on the run. it's an attempt to divert people from real
(but expensive) solutions by making them focus on personal-scale trivia.


craig

-- 
craig sanders <cas at taz.net.au>

Currently listening to: Tristan Cooke - Tetrapod

A single death is a tragedy, a million deaths is a statistic.
		-- Joseph Stalin