Comments on: What’s wrong with banning plastic bags http://trueslant.com/paultullis/2009/05/21/whats-wrong-with-banning-plastic-bags/ Debunking, counterintuitiveness, and general harumphing Sat, 27 Nov 2010 05:52:03 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Katie Drummond http://trueslant.com/paultullis/2009/05/21/whats-wrong-with-banning-plastic-bags/comment-page-1/#comment-17 Katie Drummond Fri, 22 May 2009 11:06:18 +0000 http://trueslant.com/paultullis/?p=54#comment-17 I can't say I have a solution to scourge the earth of evil plastic...but when I get groceries, I just bring my backpack. Which means, yes, I'm that weird little girl lugging around a huge freaking backpack everywhere I go. But you never know when it'll come in handy. I can’t say I have a solution to scourge the earth of evil plastic…but when I get groceries, I just bring my backpack. Which means, yes, I’m that weird little girl lugging around a huge freaking backpack everywhere I go. But you never know when it’ll come in handy.

]]> By: Paul Tullis http://trueslant.com/paultullis/2009/05/21/whats-wrong-with-banning-plastic-bags/comment-page-1/#comment-16 Paul Tullis Thu, 21 May 2009 22:31:15 +0000 http://trueslant.com/paultullis/?p=54#comment-16 Here's my theory on Newsom: The marriage ceremonies he presided over in the City Hall rotunda were all over cable news in early 2004; it was after that when the initiatives banning gay marriage went on state ballots; these initiatives galvanized rightists who might otherwise have stayed home to come out and vote for the bans and for Bush; only one state with such an initiative (say, Missouri, which was close in the presidential election) needed to go to Kerry to tilt the electoral college to him. Here’s my theory on Newsom: The marriage ceremonies he presided over in the City Hall rotunda were all over cable news in early 2004; it was after that when the initiatives banning gay marriage went on state ballots; these initiatives galvanized rightists who might otherwise have stayed home to come out and vote for the bans and for Bush; only one state with such an initiative (say, Missouri, which was close in the presidential election) needed to go to Kerry to tilt the electoral college to him.

]]> By: robertmoore http://trueslant.com/paultullis/2009/05/21/whats-wrong-with-banning-plastic-bags/comment-page-1/#comment-15 robertmoore Thu, 21 May 2009 22:07:52 +0000 http://trueslant.com/paultullis/?p=54#comment-15 Interesting questions. I think that the negatives of plastic bags are universally acknowledged--environmental damage aside, the flapping of bags in leafless trees in winter is a particularly unpleasant sight. My local grocery store has a bin to "recycle" one's plastic bags, but I am a bit skeptical on the extent to which that is actually what happens to them when I stuff last week's bags in there. Like so much in modern green-washed consumer culture, though, it makes me feel good and, well, out of sight, out of mind. For the purposes of something like grocery shopping, the energy and materials inputs into reusable bags are amortized over many, many uses so it would be interesting to calculate and compare. That said, it's not realistic to think that everyone will carry bags around with them for every errand they run. I'd like to see an article about disposable versus cloth diapers. I've heard conflicting arm-chair analysis of petroleum/landfill issues versus caustic chemicals used to clean the reusable ones. Oh, and I think you give Gavin Newsom too much credit for 2004. Interesting questions.

I think that the negatives of plastic bags are universally acknowledged–environmental damage aside, the flapping of bags in leafless trees in winter is a particularly unpleasant sight.

My local grocery store has a bin to “recycle” one’s plastic bags, but I am a bit skeptical on the extent to which that is actually what happens to them when I stuff last week’s bags in there. Like so much in modern green-washed consumer culture, though, it makes me feel good and, well, out of sight, out of mind.

For the purposes of something like grocery shopping, the energy and materials inputs into reusable bags are amortized over many, many uses so it would be interesting to calculate and compare. That said, it’s not realistic to think that everyone will carry bags around with them for every errand they run.

I’d like to see an article about disposable versus cloth diapers. I’ve heard conflicting arm-chair analysis of petroleum/landfill issues versus caustic chemicals used to clean the reusable ones.

Oh, and I think you give Gavin Newsom too much credit for 2004.

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