The more than 150-year reign of the patented Thomas Edison-style incandescent lightbulb, which helped usher in the modern electric era, has finally been brought to an end under the administration of President Joe Biden.
On Tuesday, a rule imposed by Biden's Energy Department to effectively ban incandescent lightbulbs went into full effect, meaning American consumers can only purchase LED lightbulbs from now on, according to the Daily Wire.
The move has been decried by many Republicans as being the epitome of Big Government paternalism, will reduce choices for consumers, and will likely cause significant problems for some Americans who rely on the heating effect of incandescent bulbs, which is not replicated by LED bulbs, in raising certain animals and plants, particularly in colder climates.
According to The Franklin Institute, Thomas Edison and his associates, following years of trial and error, perfected the modern incandescent lightbulb in 1879 and received a patent for the new "electric lamp" in 1880.
The glass vacuum bulb contained a carbon-based filament that emitted consistent light and modest heat when electricity was passed through it. The bulb served as a massive improvement over the relatively weaker gas-powered lights of the time and has remained relatively unchanged with only minor improvements since then.
Unfortunately, that major societal advancement has now been cast aside and literally banned by the Biden administration as part of its incessant efforts to address the purported threat of "climate change."
In April 2022, the Biden Energy Department announced that it had finalized two new rules for lightbulbs, one of which redefined what constituted a lightbulb and the other of which set new energy efficiency standards for them -- which effectively outlawed the Edison-style incandescent bulbs in favor of the new LED-style bulbs.
The Department estimated that the rule change would collectively save American families approximately $3 billion annually on their utility bills, would save additional money at the store since LED bulbs reportedly last anywhere from 25 to 50 percent longer than incandescents, and would reduce carbon emissions by as much as 222 metric tons over the next 30 years -- which sounds like a lot until one considers that China by itself emits upwards of 11.5 billion metric tons of carbon emissions per year, according to the Daily Wire.
None of that matters to the Biden administration, though, as Energy Sec. Jennifer Granholm bragged in a statement at that time, "By raising energy efficiency standards for lightbulbs, we’re putting $3 billion back in the pockets of American consumers every year and substantially reducing domestic carbon emissions."
"The lighting industry is already embracing more energy-efficient products, and this measure will accelerate progress to deliver the best products to American consumers and build a better and brighter future," she added.
According to The Hill, despite the new lightbulb rules being finalized last year, a phase-out period for incandescent bulbs was implemented that just concluded on July 31, meaning it is now illegal to import, manufacture, or sell incandescent bulbs in the U.S. -- though enforcement and penalties will supposedly only be applied against distributors and retailers and not individuals who still possess the banned bulbs.
The outlet further noted that the planned phase-out of incandescent lightbulbs began modestly in 2007 under then-President George W. Bush but was greatly accelerated under former President Barack Obama, only to be halted and reversed under former President Donald Trump in 2019.
The lightbulb ban plan was then revived by President Biden as part of his broader "climate change" agenda, which is also targeting numerous other standard home appliances with significantly increased energy efficiency standards that will inevitably result in more products being banned or becoming unaffordable.
Though some may dismiss this lightbulb ban as no big deal, it is actually quite consequential and will have numerous ramifications, both anticipated and unanticipated, and is an act of tyrannical authoritarianism that removes choice for consumers and forces them to make use of a product they may not want or that doesn't meet their particular needs.
