What weird news stories make you either laugh out loud, or just say "huh?'

[Merlin the Elder]

I'm glad to see that somebody in the government has a sense of humour...

[LadyStitch]

Hey if it works, it works.   

[Rowan MacD]

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/05/18/cdc-warns-public-prepare-zombie-apocalypse/

OK, for a minute there I was thinking they were talking about this Saturday, May 21st,2011.  That's the latest estimate for when the world is supposed to end (again).

[LadyShadow]

Heres one for Judgement Day. For those leaving the Earth that day rest assured you pets can be taken care of.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110518/od_afp/usreligionanimalsoffbeat_20110518180405

[Lady Kett]

Heres one for Judgement Day. For those leaving the Earth that day rest assured you pets can be taken care of.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110518/od_afp/usreligionanimalsoffbeat_20110518180405

ROFL, that's great.

[Merlin the Elder]

BWAAHahahhaa... Those people will get rich! I wish I'd thought of that.

[Lady Christina de Pond]

my thing is they act like your going on vacation and will be back hello if your leaving your not coming back

[Rowan MacD]

  Weird accident....The insurance report had to be interesting.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110525/ap_on_re_as/as_new_zealand_human_balloon

[Lady Christina de Pond]

ok

[Adriana Rose]

errr 0_o

Mythbusters sould try that out lol

[LadyStitch]

Uh.... I have heard of doctors using compressed air in abdominal surgery, but this....  Ouch!   Thankfully they have socialized medicine but still....I think this qualifys as a "untold story of the ER"

[Rowan MacD]

errr 0_o

Mythbusters sould try that out lol

I would soooooo tune in for that episode.....

[Rowan MacD]

  While not really weird, this stuck me as a bit disconcerting.  
 

http://finance.yahoo.com/family-home/article/112839/stores-stock-new-light-bulbs-switch-wsj

 While I use CFL's where ever I can, there are still more than a few instances where they cannot (according to the manufacturer) be used that really makes you stop and see that they are not the %100 perfect replacement for incandescant bulbs that the manufacturers, advertisers and of course the environmentalists would have everybody think they are.  Sure they are cheaper to use, and have a much longer life, but there are quite a few limitations to their usage.  

For example:

  Dimmer switches-though apparently you can now buy special CFL's for those at a signifigant increase in price.

Ceiling fans-According ot the manufacturer, you should not use CFL's on fans, any other light fixture that could vibrate, or any enclosed fixture.
  This restriction may be a deal breaker for a lot of folks. In my home, practically allthe ceiling lights in my house are also fans, and/or sport one of those frosted glass dome covers, and just about everybody I know has the same issue.  In fact my very pretty dining room fan/light (installed just last fall) cannot take CFC's because it is a fan and it has a bulb enclosure/decorative cover.  You should not use a CFL in a bathroom fan/ceiling light for the same reason.  Ditto the  light in my exhaust hood over my stove (though I do have a CFL in there right now).

 Recessed lighting fixtures-Apparently CFL's have an optimal operating temperature range and if you put one in your recessed light fixture like the one over your shower or kitchen sink you void the warranty.  Once again you can buy one suitable for this purpose.  I did, and it wasn't cheap.


  You can't use them in Easy Bake Ovens.


 Note: I have no experience with LED bulbs,  since $20.00 each is a bit out of my price range. I am sure they are the bulb of the future, but they will need to get waaay cheaper before they catch on with the average consumer.
 

[Elennare]

Another thing with the CFL's a lot of people don't realize is they've got Mercury in them and need to be disposed of as hazardous waste.  Also, you're not supposed to use them in places where the base is above the bulb - the minimal heat it produces goes up into the electronics that make them work and kills the bulb much faster than it's supposed to.

I really like the LED lights as a replacement, aside from the prices, and the current difficulty in finding bright enough ones in shapes/sizes that fit a standard light socket.  I really hope they catch on, rather than the CFLs.  Sadly, the CFLs seem to have all the marketing behind them.

[Rowan MacD]

I really like the LED lights as a replacement, aside from the prices, and the current difficulty in finding bright enough ones in shapes/sizes that fit a standard light socket.  I really hope they catch on, rather than the CFLs.  Sadly, the CFLs seem to have all the marketing behind them.

I have been surfing the web off and on since I saw this article, and I am concerned  at all the hyperbole vs fact about CFL's.  You have to dig to find any unbiased blogs/articles or anything else purporting to be 'fact' that even mentions any of the above concerns or drawbacks of these light bulbs.   In fact, I dug up all of the 'negative' points I listed in my original post from the manufacturers website, not the sites the regular Joe would read.  Seems there are few willing to point out that there might actually be drawbacks to CFL's.  According to the media hoopla, it's the best thing since sliced bread, which automatically makes me suspicious.
  The companies marketing these and (of more concern to me) environmentalists are pushing CFL usage extremely hard.   I can't count how many times I have read or heard 'Just pop one of these babies in any place you currently use a regular light bulb'  like there isn't tons of fine print about the dangers and restrictions on their use.  Right now the only benefit that I can see is that they save electricity and (theoretically) space in the land fill, but the fact is most of us won't bother to collect and recycle them (which I do, but then I recycle shopping bags too) and will just chuck them in the trash the same way we do with regular light bulbs which are not toxic. So much for being better for the environment.