Activists Want South Korean Government to Ban Plastic Straws
There is more than just plastic straws that cause problems for bird and marine life, but this is a small way to start mitigating plastic pollution:
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The debate on banning on single-use plastic straws to cut plastic waste is clashing with the pursuit of convenience.
Korea Times
As over 10 billion plastic straws are used every year in Korea, environmental groups are calling for a ban on disposable plastic products to reduce litter and other environmental consequences of plastic waste.
However, some claim such a move is premature given that an abrupt ban without proper alternatives can inconvenience consumers.
The Korean Federation for Environmental Movement held a press conference Tuesday, urging the government to ban use of plastic straws by law. It is gathering signatures both on and offline to support the plan.
“The current law does not recognize plastic straws as a disposable product thus they are not subjected to government rules on their free use at restaurants or coffee shops,” the environmental group said in its statement. “Plastic straws cause not only air pollution, but also soil contamination and harm to marine life.”
Funny, I remember as a kid we had paper straws, they seemed to work okay, why not go back to them?
All this nonsense about plastic straws ignores the fact that well over 60 percent of the pollution, garbage, and abuse of the Pacific Ocean is done by China. The rest of the world could throw all the straws in the ocean and it wouldn’t make a noticeable increase.
The protesters are ableists. They hate handicapped people who need to use soft straws due to the aftereffects of birth defects, surgery, or disease.
From the article:
I remember using paper straws too. I don’t think they were ever meant for hot drinks. They held up well enough in cold drinks for the few minutes you used them before tossing them.
Apparently, drinking directly from a cup is a skill many of us have never learned or have forgotten.
I drink from a reusable straw, hand-crafted from baby sea turtle shell.
JoeC, I lost the ability to drink from a cup after the doctors at MD Anderson took out 1/4 of my lower jaw, 6 teeth, and a bunch of nerves. I have to cut up my food before eating it because my front teeth no longer line up.
And there are many people online whose only visible handicap is having to grip so tightly to a social justice platform that they harm innocent people.
CH, I want to reuse your comment. May I?
My other reusable straw is a dried and lacquered section of spotted owl intestine.
I keep them in my single-use whaleskin sacks.
CH, I’m proud of your stand against plastics polluting the oceans. It takes courage to stand up to the free straws available pretty much everywhere. And I thought single-use whaleskin was only for single-use dish-washing gloves. Shows how out of touch I’ve gotten since my day at Whirled Peas Inc…