I suppose that's one way to describe the blackout that hit the Superdome in the third quarter of the game. The lights went out for half an hour, so it was certainly "energy efficiency" when you look at it a certain way.

From the Energy Department prior to the game:

To make this the greenest Super Bowl, the New Orleans Host Committee has partnered with fans and the community to offset energy use across the major Super Bowl venues. The exterior of the Mercedes-Benz Superdome features more than 26,000 LED lights on 96 full-color graphic display panels, designed to wash the building in a spectrum of animated colors, patterns and images. The system draws only 10 kilowatts of electricity -- equivalent to the amount of energy used by a small home -- and the lights are expected to last for many years before needing replacement.

So, what happened?

ESPN:

Minutes after Jones gave the Ravens a 28-6 lead on the second-half kickoff, the lights went out in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Some backup lighting remained on, but play was stopped for about 34 minutes, and the international television broadcast was interrupted.

Officials from Entergy, the utility company supplying power to the Superdome, said the outage occurred when sensing equipment detected an "abnormality" in the system.

A statement from Entergy and the Superdome said that a piece of equipment monitoring electrical load sensed the abnormality and opened a breaker, partially cutting power. The statement said backup generators kicked in before full power could be restored.

"The power outage was an unfortunate moment in what has been an otherwise shining Super Bowl week for the city of New Orleans,'" Mayor Mitch Landrieau said. "In the coming days, I expect a full after-action report from all parties involved.

No, the eco-friendly lights had nothing to do with the blackout - probably. But in the age of Obama, it's more important that something is seen as a societal good, rather than making sure it works.