Here is a great business opportunity...

It is grounded in the fundamental truth of all business: wherever there is demand, there will be an opportunity to supply.

Nothing can alter that. When governments try to interfere, through bans or over-regulation or over-taxation, the demand remains – and so does the opportunity.

The only effect of the interference is to raise prices in accordance with the basic laws of economics.

Failure to appreciate that simple fact led to the disaster that followed Prohibition of alcohol sales in the USA in the 1920s – turning most of the adult population into criminal accomplices. Most current narcotics policies fail because they make gestures at tackling supply without really addressing demand.

The same will happen to the attempts by various governments to outlaw incandescent light bulbs on supposed “environmental” grounds.

They ignore the fact that the supposed alternative, compact fluorescent lights, or CFLs, are not fit for purpose. There is disagreement about the effects of flickering of CFLs on epileptics. They ignore the needs of those with poor eyesight, who require bright lights to read, and whose eyes will be further strained by CFLs. They ignore the medical fact that dull lighting increases clinical depression.

They ignore the effects their UV emission will have on photographs, artwork, certain fabrics, and some photoreactive chemicals used in furniture finishes.

They ignore the fact that CFLs won’t work with dimmers. They ignore the fact that there are no CFL alternatives for low voltage systems or small sized bulbs. Likewise CFLs tend to be larger than thus protrude from many fittings.

Ironically, they ignore even the inconvenient truth that CFLs themselves are potentially more damaging to the environment than incandescent bulbs.

They ignore everything but their own eco ideology.

In doing so, they also ignore the lucrative opportunities of their own making for bulb smugglers – and doubtless bulb lords or bulb barons.

Of course, we would never advise anyone to break the law – even a particularly stupid and immoral law that makes honest business illegal.

If, however, anyone knows of someone selling 100W bulbs in the UK after the September ban, please drop us an e-mail so that we can buy... er... by guaranteeing confidentiality, discuss frankly the ethics of civil disobedience.