Big Red Car here to inform y’all about a new threat to civilization – the profileration of the deadly plastic straw.
To be specific, the unsolicited offering of a plastic straw by a waiter. You will recognize this as a crime against humanity of the first order, no?
California is way out in front on this issue currently considering a ban on unsolicited plastic straws.
The California bill is #AB 1884 Straws Upon Request which would make it unlawful for a waiter to provide a plastic straw without a request from a customer.
Violators of the Retail Food Section of the California Health and Safety Code would be guilty of a misdemeanor which is “punishable by a fine of not less than $25 or more than $1,000, or by imprisonment in the county jail for a term not exceeding 6 months, or by both.” [California legislators ensure the Big Red Car they will clean this up and they won’t “criminalize” unsolicited plastic straws, but we’ve heard that before, haven’t we?]
Before we dismiss this out of hand as being more California lunacy, let’s focus on the fact that plastic lasts forever and is, typically, not recycled.
There are reported to be 500,000,000 plastic straws used and thrown away per day which is more than 180,000,000,000 plastic straws per year.
As a category, only 33% of US plastic is recycled annually.
So, there you have it, a step forward in the reduction of the plastic straw crime spree.
Me? I am all in on #boycottplasticstraws
But, hey, what the Hell do I know anyway? I’m just a Big Red Car and I never use a straw. I like the feel of the ice cubes against my radiator when I drink.
