How Many Politicians

How many politicians does it take to change a lightbulb?


No, really. You may be thinking this is like the “how many programmers” lightbulb joke. (Answer: No number is sufficient; it’s a hardware problem.) That would be a reasonable thought (or a lame joke; your call). But I’m thinking this issue would call for legislative action (and another lame joke, of course).

First, the bipartisan committee would have to be formed and named something appropriate (say, the Committee for Bipartisan Upkeep of Legislative Lighting while Safeguarding Health and Impact…etc.). Then, the Co-BULL..etc. debate could proceed about wattage, variety (fluorescent or incandescent would be a key issue here and would probably require input from the joint legislative committee on energy policy), contracting requirements, and so on.

By that time, several days would have passed. So someone in Maintenance, who doesn’t have a healthcare plan, a retirement job lined up, or expensive advertising to help keep his or her job, has already changed the bulb. So the committee could debate whether a change of focus is necessary or the Co-BULL…etc. should continue, in anticipation of the next Lighting Fixture Maintenance Event.

In case you're wondering why yet another back-to-back post, my planned tasks for the week are to complete a peer review, work on an annotated bibiliography, clean out my files, and do bookkeeping.