e change, the world changes!
13 years ago my sister came to NYC on a business trip. She was staying at a swanky hotel so I took the train uptown and stayed with her in the swanky hotel. You know how they provide drinking cups on the vanity? Well this swanky place puts rigid plastic cups wrapped in cellophane to be used once and tossed....I kept the 2 small cups I opened... they have the hotel logo etched on them...and I still use them today. In these past 13 yrs I can only imagine how many of these cups they have tossed into the garbage? A trillion possibly, most likely MORE than I can imagine...if every room and this was a 20 story hotel, huge possibly an entire city block in length so I figure 20 rooms at least per floor, 400 rooms, with 2 cups per room per day...Okay you get the idea and can do the math.
I'm going to tell you something you already know! Plastic is BAD! I needed this new slap upside my head reminder tho....so glad I just watched a documentary on Pivot channel about plastics and how it is ruining our oceans, killing our birds, fish, and other sea creatures, making our children reach puberty too early, destroying brain cells, and causing many health issues to our population. I don't begin to pretend I'm not one of the offenders but I do try...Now my plan is to try harder!
Naming here the industry and corporations responsible, who create these monsters; Exxon Mobil, Dupont, and Dow Chemicals. They refuse to be held accountable for their products...and they file lawsuits to cease and desist against any small fry who try to awaken society and hold them accountable like a guy called Mr Plastic Bag, Bag Man who tied bags to his body and tried to raise awareness of the dangers of plastic bags as he marched around town.
The middle of the ocean is a steaming hot mess of plastic collecting in huge barges of flotsom made up mostly of BPA plastics. The researchers did an on the spot autopsy of a dead albatross cutting him open at the belly and he was full up with plastic bottle caps, bits n pieces of plastic mesh, and other things like plastic straws, toys, plastic packaging and just a whole sh*t load of plastic!!
British chemist Charles Edward Dodds recognizes BPA as an artificial estrogen? Amazing right..after long battles and while other countries have banned BPA for food containers and especially infant foods, In March 2014, Rep. Edward Markey (D-MA) asks the FDA to ban the chemical's use in formula containers, reusable food containers and in canned foods and beverages. The last two petitions are rejected, but the FDA accepts the petition on infant formula, and says it plans to collect comment from the public before making a final decision. The FDA says it will try to complete a scientific review within the next 90 days. I for one don't need or plan to wait on the freaking FDA to keep me safe....who do you think they plan to side with?? Did you know most FDA examiners and officials came right from the food industry?
There is a fox in the hen house folks!!
So what we have are 3 of the biggest corporations on Earth destroying the Earth and who is the middle man spreading it from pole to pole?? WE are ---YOU AND I!! In the times we live seems we have given up trying to fight the good fight...I know I feel the same way-- it's hopeless...we feel helpless to stop them they are TOO BIG for us to defeat. Lawyers will fall upon us like Brimstone straight from hell...there are way too many deaf ears in these times we live in.
So what can we do?? Simple, don't buy the crap they sell in plastic! Single use plastic bags, cups, coffee container tops, bottles, things things things.
Who am I to preach, well I'm not! I am not going to preach I'm going to lead by example, and make a challenge to all who read these pages. Bottled water buyers beware!! What's wrong with buying yourself a sweet bottle you will reuse, a metal one perhaps? Non BPA bottles save millions of tons of that crap from becoming a death trap for a bird who may have never seen a human in it's entire life. Why do our blueberries have to be in plastic containers?? Then maybe we don't eat blue berries if they are in plastic!
Shrink wrapped veggies, NO way get the loose veggies, and don't put them in one of those plastic bags to take home...just toss them in the cart! This is my plan I'm sure you can come up with one that will work for you!
People of NYC are lucky in that there is a fresh produce market right on each street corner! Selling produce in bins un-bagged and unwrapped is the best way. Paper bags work great and they decay! Trees are renewable, not talking ancient forest here...but areas like where I live have become tree growing hots spots...so why not sacrifice some sandy land not much good for growing anything anyway and grow these dang pulpwood pines....yes paper has its problems with waste waters at the source of production...(one fight at a time). Speaking of cities, when I lived in NYC I can tell you they produce more trash than you can imagine...it leaves on huge barges from Staten Island every single day it goes to your state, and mine, and it goes to China where most of the recycle processing is being done!!
Bring your own cloth reusable bag to the check out or a cardboard box! I like boxes too cause they don't fall over in the car ride home and you can reuse them for years if you take care of them! Glass bottles are awesome you can keep them forever and refill them with your favorite beverage make your own beverages, teas, coffee. Use refillable pods not the ones made of one use plastic! Did you know they been lining the inside of canned food with this BPA stuff? It leeches into the food--
Recycling is one help but guess what its only makes up 30% of the plastics being manufactured..it is still 70% NEW material!! As of late I have become a slacker, I was buying some products in plastic, but Mom and I just had a conversation, we are going to reduce our plastic use by as much as we possibly can, like my Mom's medicine comes in plastic, we can't change that!! Until Biodegradable packaging becomes profitable it will be up to each of us to do the right thing!! NO more ONE use purchases of plastics for us.
This stuff can not be thrown away...it goes from your hand right to the environment! It never goes away it stays for EVER, unless we process it into something else...and we really don't need these plastics to continue! We got along just fine with the old ways of packaging before plastics came along.
SO I'm not preaching I am issuing a challenge, give some thought to the products you buy and try your very best to not buy plastic encased products...if you can't convince anyone else to follow your lead, no matter, you are making a difference, do the math to prove to yourself how much difference one person can make.
we must be the change we wish to see---Ghandi
