Pelosi's Green House

June 26, 2007

Environmentalism: At a time when mercury is being removed from public use as a toxic hazard, the speaker of the House wants to expand its use. How many Democrats does it take to change a light bulb?

Nancy Pelosi wants to lead by example, at least on the environment. Al Gore and John Edwards might live in energy-guzzling abodes, but the House of Representatives is going to be carbon-neutral by the end of the 110th Congress.

Last week Pelosi announced that, as part of her "Greening of the Capitol" initiative, the House would replace its coal-fired plant with one using natural gas. Never mind that she won't let us exploit the trillions of cubic feet of the stuff locked up within the U.S. and in the Outer Continental Shelf.

The House would also purchase carbon offsets from an outfit called the Chicago Climate Exchange. Carbon offsets are scams that allow gluttonous energy consumers like Gore to ease their conscience while doing absolutely nothing to curb their own energy use.

You buy a carbon offset, giving money to people who will do something like plant trees in Zimbabwe, which supposedly will reduce or absorb carbon emissions by an equivalent amount. You are then declared "carbon-neutral" while you continue to pollute.

Pelosi also pledged to cut back on electricity use, and one of the ways is to replace incandescent bulbs in the House with the latest environmental gadget, the compact fluorescent light, or CFL.

A 20-watt CFL emits as much light as a 100-watt incandescent bulb. But, unlike Thomas Edison's creation, each CFL contains about 5 milligrams of mercury.

On New Year's Eve, you could have confused the town of Carmel, N.Y., with Chernobyl when a reported 100 firefighters, many in hazmat suits, responded to a 911 call regarding a broken rectal thermometer.

Brandy Bridges of Prospect, Maine, found out firsthand what can happen when a CFL bulb breaks. She had bought about two dozen of them to install throughout her house. When the one she was putting in the ceiling fixture of her daughter's bedroom broke, she called the store where she bought it, concerned about the mercury that spilled out.

A month after her call, her daughter's bedroom was taped off as she was pondering a $2,000 estimate to clean up what was now, in effect, a Superfund site.

Mercury is considered by the greenies to be among the most toxic of toxic substances and, yes, it is dangerous if ingested or handled over time. We've been warned that high concentrations in fish are dangerous to pregnant women. We have been told mercury in vaccines causes autism. So it's safe in light bulbs?

We wonder if the Capitol will be evacuated when the first CFL bulb in the environmentally friendly House of Representatives breaks. And why, if mercury is such a danger, does Nancy Pelosi want to fill the House with it?

Source: Investor's Business Daily