Concern Trolling CFL bulbs

Concern about the CFL bulbs seems overdone. This post on The Daily Dish wonders whether CFL bulbs could be a net environmental loss.  I bet not.  I guarantee I was exposed to tremendous amounts of mercury in science class, when we rolled balls of it all over our desks.  In our physics class, a girl ran into the mercury barometer and it went everywhere.  I had a CFL gas off in my kitchen, and I didn't see any mercury anywhere.  If mercury is such a big concern, maybe we shouldn't burn coal, and these CFLs will help us burn less.