Originally posted by Rosuav

Agreed, they are excellent. Although, I'm now wondering if their time, hardly even started, is already ending - LEDs are taking over in portable torches, and I wouldn't be surprised if they're starting to become popular in light fixtures as well. They're small, reliable, efficient. Out here they don't exist in light fittings, but new traffic lights use LEDs exclusively, and some vehicles use LED tail lights.
That's interesting. I don't know much about LEDs when used as a light source. I have had one on my keychain for years, and it is useful for emergency lighting as well as for keeping young children entertained. I'd be interested to know more about their environmental impact and energy consumption compared to incandescent and compact fluourescent light bulbs.

I don't think the long term solution to any environmental problem is trying to convince people to make sacrifices. It just won't ever work. For the most part, people have too many other things to worry about in their lives to deliberately worsen their life for the future benefit of preserving the environment. Maybe that is a sad statement on the human condition, but it is a true statement.

The long term solution is through technology. We have to solve our environmental problems by figuring out ways to replace "bad" technologies with better ones that do the same job as well or better while also being "greener."

Punishing people or countries for their continued insistence on doing things that make them happy (eating meat, driving their cars, etc.) won't work. We solve problems as a society by finding brilliant solutions - not by going backwards technologically or by sacrificing advances we have made.