Fri, July 1, 2005
Waste—6:49 AM
I think we should have a law that any unsolicited bulk mail must be printed on 100% recycled paper. PennySaver, Val-Pak, those "Have You Seen Me?" cards – it's bad enough I'm getting catalogs from Pottery Barn and Restoration Hardware, but at least I have shopped at those stores. This other stuff is completely useless; I never read it, I just toss it in the bin. And it comes in by the cartload every week. If companies are going to insist on sending it out, we should do our best to minimize the ecological footprint – plus anything that makes it more expensive might curtail the practice somewhat.
Jeff Tidball — Fri, 7/1/05 10:51am
This is an idea whose time has come.
After that: a gigantic tax on cheapass plastic grocery store bags.
"AC" — Sat, 7/2/05 10:28am
Speaking of grocery store bags, why in the hell do they always assume you're gonna want plastic?? They always already have half a plasic bag filled before they ask me, and when I say 'paper,' they look so dejected! What's worse– half the time when you tell them paper, they'll put the paper bag in a plastic bag anyway!! I get the paper bags because they're easy to recycle used coke cans and the bulk mail described above. But the plastic? I don't have any dogs, so what good are they to me?
Jeff Tidball — Sat, 7/2/05 1:51pm
The obsession with plastic grocery store bags seems to be a California thing. Or, at least, they didn't have or use them in grocery stores in the Twin Cities.
Bee Boy — Mon, 7/4/05 9:24am
I use the paper ones for the same reason, but unless I'm running low on those, I stick with plastic because Michael Crichton indicated it to be the more ecological choice in the endnotes of State of Fear.
"Holly" — Tue, 7/5/05 5:12pm
C'mon, fellas, get on the ball and use canvas bags. Much, much easier to carry from the car to the kitchen. No piles of paper OR plastic bags building up under the sink. And best of all, that amazing 5 cent discount per bag! That 15-20 cent discount every time I shop really adds up.