Ban bottled water...then raise taxes on soda?

[MsDoodahs]

I remember hearing not long ago that bottled water is really bad bad bad because of global warming, I think it was...

One town actually banned it from their stores, IIRC.

Now I'm hearing those douchebags on the hill are wanting to put a really high tax sodas and juice drinks.

Hmmm.

Get the water off the shelves so the dumbmasses will go back to soda, and we will rake in BAZILLIONS!

:eek:

[TCE]

I remember hearing not long ago that bottled water is really bad bad bad because of global warming, I think it was...

One town actually banned it from their stores, IIRC.

Now I'm hearing those douchebags on the hill are wanting to put a really high tax sodas and juice drinks.

Hmmm.

Get the water off the shelves so the dumbmasses will go back to soda, and we will rake in BAZILLIONS!

:eek:

http://www.neutralexistence.com/blog/bottled-water-ban-in-san-fran/

San Francisco has, Seattle has, and another city has.

[Reason]

I remember hearing not long ago that bottled water is really bad bad bad because of global warming, I think it was...

One town actually banned it from their stores, IIRC.

Now I'm hearing those douchebags on the hill are wanting to put a really high tax sodas and juice drinks.

Hmmm.

Get the water off the shelves so the dumbmasses will go back to soda, and we will rake in BAZILLIONS!

:eek:

1. Bottled water is a sham due to the fact that 90+% of it comes from the tap in another state.

2. Buying crates of bottled water is bad for the environment because people are too stupid to toss it into a recycling bin or god forbid, actually refill it with more water and keep using it. (look up pictures of what the centers of our oceans look like, massive hundreds of acres of just floating plastic bottles)

http://learnshareact.com/sustainable/files/2009/03/trash_ocean.jpg

[dannno]

http://www.neutralexistence.com/blog/bottled-water-ban-in-san-fran/

San Francisco has, Seattle has, and another city has.

Lol..


The results showed that bottled water did not have the recommended amount of fluorides

Great, I'm switching to bottled water!!



Though they did say that the bacteria level in the bottled water was higher, I'm not surprised. I got some bottled water from 7-11, left it in my car for like 3 or 4 days after opening and drinking some and it went bad!! The bottled water I normally buy lasts a couple weeks or so after opening.. It costs the same, but they are better brands with better filtration and better water sources. It's all about the free market, IMO. And ya, I re-use and/or recycle them. I mostly drink filtered tap water at home, just have bottles for the road.

[TCE]

Lol..



Great, I'm switching to bottled water!!

Quiet you! Take your EPA daily recommended amount of fluoride!

[BenIsForRon]

Bottled water is terrible for the environment. It takes a lot of energy and resources to make those bottles, when everybody should just have their own reusable containers they fill at home and work. Outlawing bottled water all together is not the solution though.


I mostly drink filtered tap water at home, just have bottles for the road.

Get a canteen, reusable, made of steel so no hormone like chemicals coming off the plastic.

[georgiaboy]

canteens ftw. ahh, memories of cub scouts.

Wonder if restaurants, ballparks, SixFlags, etc., will start allowing canteens?

[BenIsForRon]

Of course, when I say canteen, I mean things like this.

http://www.amazon.com/New-Wave-Enviro-Stainless-1-Liter/dp/B001LNUIWU

[mediahasyou]

2. Buying crates of bottled water is bad for the environment because people are too stupid to toss it into a recycling bin or god forbid, actually refill it with more water and keep using it.

If clean oceans are so important, stop wasting your time typing and clean up the oceans yourself.

http://openbytes.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/lazy_cat.jpg

[BenIsForRon]

^ Yeah, ok. We should waste time cleaning up the oceans while people keep piling on the trash. Why don't people just stop producing as much trash? Oh yeah, that would get in the way of PROGRESS!

[angelatc]

I hate thread hijacks.

Back to the original topic, http://www.taxgirl.com/more-on-health-care-reform-congress-apparently-sweet-on-soda-tax/

My snarky comment is easily identifiable at the bottom, and I very much like the post by the woman below me!

[angelatc]

I got some bottled water from 7-11, left it in my car for like 3 or 4 days after opening and drinking some and it went bad!!


The human mouth is hardly a sterile environment.

[brandon]

Silly liberals.

One of my old friends, who is an all out hippy/socialist/art *** type of person now, posted some ridiculous rant on her face book yesterday...

"We need to implement a giant fat tax and then make programs that make healthy food more affordable!"

I should mention this girl is an alcoholic and chain smoker. I wonder how she likes her cigarette tax.

[mediahasyou]

^ Yeah, ok. We should waste time cleaning up the oceans while people keep piling on the trash. Why don't people just stop producing as much trash? Oh yeah, that would get in the way of PROGRESS!

I will continue to produce the amount of trash that best serves my self-interest. :)

Try to change human behavior yourself, you won't get very far. ;)
However, if you pick up a bottle in the ocean, you are one step closer to a pollution free world.

[brandon]

[B]1. Bottled water is a sham due to the fact that 90+% of it comes from the tap in another state.


It's a sham? Are you claiming that bottled water is in fact not really bottled water?


Most people buy it for the convenience. Myself included.

[BenIsForRon]

I will continue to produce the amount of trash that best serves my self-interest. :)

Try to change human behavior yourself, you won't get very far. ;)
However, if you pick up a bottle in the ocean, you are one step closer to a pollution free world.

Do you not care what condition the world is in for your grandchildren? Or do you plan on not having children and just trashing the place while you're here?



It's a sham? Are you claiming that bottled water is in fact not really bottled water?


Most people buy it for the convenience. Myself included.

Your convenience comes at the expense of other organisms and people, therefore it is immoral. Read: externality. Because you don't see it happening doesn't mean it isn't happening.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Externality

[angelatc]

MsD: http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2009/07/craft_video_diy_soda.html

Bootleg yeast on the horizon. Who da think it?

[brandon]

Your convenience comes at the expense of other organisms and people, therefore it is immoral. Read: externality. Because you don't see it happening doesn't mean it isn't happening.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Externality

What is the external cost of buying a bottle of water?

[Reason]

It's a sham? Are you claiming that bottled water is in fact not really bottled water?


Most people buy it for the convenience. Myself included.

sham comment is in reference to the majority of people believing that the bottled water is cleaner than tap water which has been proven to be false over and over again.

penn & teller did a good episode regarding this issue on their documentary show named "BULLSHIT" that airs on showtime.

[brandon]

sham comment is in reference to the majority of people believing that the bottled water is cleaner than tap water which has been proven to be false over and over again.

penn & teller did a good episode regarding this issue on their documentary show named "BULLSHIT" that airs on showtime.

Well even if it is tap water, I'm sure they at least run it through some type of filter before they bottle it.

[BenIsForRon]

What is the external cost of buying a bottle of water?

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/07/reasons_to_ditch_bottled_water.php

[Reason]

Well even if it is tap water, I'm sure they at least run it through some type of filter before they bottle it.

Some do, most don't. You should watch the episode

[Mini-Me]

Your convenience comes at the expense of other organisms and people, therefore it is immoral. Read: externality. Because you don't see it happening doesn't mean it isn't happening.

Our wasteful lifestyle actually does bother me, but more in the conceptual sense than the practical sense, since I consider it more of a long-term problem than an imminent threat. The real problem isn't bottled water in particular, plastic packaging in general, or even "overconsumption," because waste reduction is nothing more than a band-aid that can only go so far. We can never eliminate packaging and waste completely, so the real problem is the fundamental way in which we dispose of our waste products. Plastic packaging, landfills to dispose of our junk, and sewage systems (rather than composting) have become such an ingrained part of our society that it's going to take some serious innovation - either on our part or on nature's part - before anything fundamentally changes. However, this WILL eventually happen, and it's already starting to, so I don't see why people are getting so overly worked up about it as if we're all going to go extinct in fifty years if we don't change our ways tomorrow morning. :rolleyes: Government aside, I see the excesses of our lifestyle as the "growing pains" of civilization that we will eventually overcome naturally, without anyone trying to force it.

As far as plastic goes: We've only been flooding the Earth with plastic for a very short amount of time, yet we're already seeing more biodegradable alternatives on the market in small amounts. Frankly, I think it's very likely that the market will move on from ubiquitous plastic well within our lifetimes. Still, if we continue to use massive amounts of plastic over a long enough time period where it truly becomes a huge problem, the odds of plastic-digesting microorganisms evolving will continue to grow, possibly to the point of inevitability. We've introduced a new type of compound to the environment that it's not able to deal with - yet - but that doesn't mean it will never be able to.

In terms of the real solution: Although they're slow to take hold, alternatives to landfills (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_solid_waste_treatment_technologies) are already emerging in the marketplace. I have little doubt that within our lifetimes - unless landfills are encouraged by government and innovation is discouraged - alternative methods of waste disposal/treatment will naturally overtake landfills in the marketplace. Similarly, the idea of composting instead of using sewage systems is already starting to make the rounds, especially among the "self-sufficient" crowd. Have you heard of the book "Humanure" by any chance? It talks about the long-term sanitary perils of our sewage system and the more health-friendly and sustainable alternative of composting. Before we die from drinking too much poop, I have a feeling the market is going to fix this stinky little problem. (Quick note: I consider the word "sustainable" to be a good thing by itself, but generally not in the political sense. The term has been so coopted by an authoritarian big-government agenda that you can't trust anyone just because they say they're fighting for "sustainability," yet that's the mentality the term seeks to encourage.)

P.S. WTF is a Benisfor? ;)

[angelatc]

Well even if it is tap water, I'm sure they at least run it through some type of filter before they bottle it.

Apparently, because tap water in the city tastes awful. That's a big attraction of bottled water.

How can you people breathe free market principles when your opinion is that people are too stupid to even drink water properly?