Is America the greatest country in the world?

PJ_Soul

mcgruff10 said:

Spiritual_Chaos said:

rgambs said:

Spiritual_Chaos said:

Thirty Bills Unpaid said:

mcgruff10 said:

I was just reading about on Sweden's role in World War 2 and found the following: Was Sweden really "neutral" during World War 2?  

Sweden's role in the Second World War had its darker side, it allowed the Germans to transit troops, supplies and communications through the country.

Sweden also profited from the Holocaust. It is known that Wallenberg's relatives made money converting Nazi gold into Swedish crowns and that Sweden provided iron ore and ball bearings to the Nazis. Swedish documents reveal that some Swedes actually sided with the Nazis and volunteered to fight for Hitler. Some Swedes were members of the Waffen SS and served in police batallions.

A committee was established by the Swedish government in 1997 to investigate the transfer of Nazi gold to Sweden during the war. It is reported that Sweden received 38 tons of gold from Nazi Germany (worth today US $430 million). Many Swedish companies, such as Ericsson, AGA and Hasselblad Cameras, as well as the country's paper and wood industries traded with Nazi Germany. Swedish jewelers bought stolen diamonds, which were smuggled into Sweden by civil servants working at the German legation in Stockholm.

An exhibition on Sweden and the Holocaust, opening in Lund, not far from where Chavka Folman-Raban enjoyed her first weeks of freedom, aims to shed light on this darker side of Sweden’s relationship to Nazism. The exhibition, accompanied by seminars and publication of new research, shows how Swedish industry benefited from the war and how Swedish scientific institutions were leaders in the fields of race biology and eugenic research. 

The exhibition also shows how Nazi ideals found Swedish sympathizers and how Sweden limited freedom of speech, and introduced immigration laws which turned away asylum seekers from Germany, many of whom were later murdered in concentration camps.

Never knew this.

How very chickenshit of them (if Spirtual's explanation for cozying up to Nazis is accurate). I mean... America (and Canada I might add) sent their sons abroad to fight for life and liberty on the very continent Sweden tucked their tails on.

Chickenshit/betraying our Norweigan and Finnish brothers or a correct decision to stay out of the war - the discussion about it will never stop here in Sweden. 

Fun fact: Only time I had to endure a "sweden hater" was when I lived in Oslo for a short while and stood in cue in a supermarket. The old man behind me heard me speaking swedish and started attacking me about how much he hated Sweden and how Sweden acted in the war and towards Norway. 

Should be noted that during our neutral stance we also helped the Allied.

Well, you should know that the discussion is settled in the rest of the world, and "correct decision" is not a phrase that ever gets used.

I do not think you are an authority or well advertised in what is being settled in the world or not regarding Sweden's decision to protect its country from war and its citizens from death.

And tell me again, where was the US before their own country got attacked? Why didn't you people come to the aid of Poland in 1939 if your're not chickenshits?

Why on earth would we defend Poland?  They were conquered in thirty days by two countries that had enormous armies.  1. No way we could mobilize our troops in the time period.  2.  No way we are taking on Germany and the Soviet Union. 3. At this point in the war we are minding our own business and enduring the Great Depression.
 I mean we eventually did get involved a little over two years later and fought all over the world.
Tell me again how the Swedish armed forces helped to defeat the Axis powers?

Lol. Two modern men having some kind of nationalistic pissing contest over what their countries did in 1941. Classic.

cincybearcat

PJ_Soul said:

mcgruff10 said:

Spiritual_Chaos said:

rgambs said:

Spiritual_Chaos said:

Thirty Bills Unpaid said:

mcgruff10 said:

I was just reading about on Sweden's role in World War 2 and found the following: Was Sweden really "neutral" during World War 2?  

Sweden's role in the Second World War had its darker side, it allowed the Germans to transit troops, supplies and communications through the country.

Sweden also profited from the Holocaust. It is known that Wallenberg's relatives made money converting Nazi gold into Swedish crowns and that Sweden provided iron ore and ball bearings to the Nazis. Swedish documents reveal that some Swedes actually sided with the Nazis and volunteered to fight for Hitler. Some Swedes were members of the Waffen SS and served in police batallions.

A committee was established by the Swedish government in 1997 to investigate the transfer of Nazi gold to Sweden during the war. It is reported that Sweden received 38 tons of gold from Nazi Germany (worth today US $430 million). Many Swedish companies, such as Ericsson, AGA and Hasselblad Cameras, as well as the country's paper and wood industries traded with Nazi Germany. Swedish jewelers bought stolen diamonds, which were smuggled into Sweden by civil servants working at the German legation in Stockholm.

An exhibition on Sweden and the Holocaust, opening in Lund, not far from where Chavka Folman-Raban enjoyed her first weeks of freedom, aims to shed light on this darker side of Sweden’s relationship to Nazism. The exhibition, accompanied by seminars and publication of new research, shows how Swedish industry benefited from the war and how Swedish scientific institutions were leaders in the fields of race biology and eugenic research. 

The exhibition also shows how Nazi ideals found Swedish sympathizers and how Sweden limited freedom of speech, and introduced immigration laws which turned away asylum seekers from Germany, many of whom were later murdered in concentration camps.

Never knew this.

How very chickenshit of them (if Spirtual's explanation for cozying up to Nazis is accurate). I mean... America (and Canada I might add) sent their sons abroad to fight for life and liberty on the very continent Sweden tucked their tails on.

Chickenshit/betraying our Norweigan and Finnish brothers or a correct decision to stay out of the war - the discussion about it will never stop here in Sweden. 

Fun fact: Only time I had to endure a "sweden hater" was when I lived in Oslo for a short while and stood in cue in a supermarket. The old man behind me heard me speaking swedish and started attacking me about how much he hated Sweden and how Sweden acted in the war and towards Norway. 

Should be noted that during our neutral stance we also helped the Allied.

Well, you should know that the discussion is settled in the rest of the world, and "correct decision" is not a phrase that ever gets used.

I do not think you are an authority or well advertised in what is being settled in the world or not regarding Sweden's decision to protect its country from war and its citizens from death.

And tell me again, where was the US before their own country got attacked? Why didn't you people come to the aid of Poland in 1939 if your're not chickenshits?

Why on earth would we defend Poland?  They were conquered in thirty days by two countries that had enormous armies.  1. No way we could mobilize our troops in the time period.  2.  No way we are taking on Germany and the Soviet Union. 3. At this point in the war we are minding our own business and enduring the Great Depression.
 I mean we eventually did get involved a little over two years later and fought all over the world.
Tell me again how the Swedish armed forces helped to defeat the Axis powers?

Lol. Two modern men having some kind of nationalistic pissing contest over what their countries did in 1941. Classic.

Surprise surprise!  In a thread set up to bash the USA for all it's faults...someone very willing to point out all the faults he sees and flying that Sweden flag high...you really wonder why someone began asking the tough questions? 

This whole thread is an embarrassment on so many levels.

Spiritual_Chaos

cincybearcat said:

PJ_Soul said:

mcgruff10 said:

Spiritual_Chaos said:

rgambs said:

Spiritual_Chaos said:

Thirty Bills Unpaid said:

mcgruff10 said:

I was just reading about on Sweden's role in World War 2 and found the following: Was Sweden really "neutral" during World War 2?  

Sweden's role in the Second World War had its darker side, it allowed the Germans to transit troops, supplies and communications through the country.

Sweden also profited from the Holocaust. It is known that Wallenberg's relatives made money converting Nazi gold into Swedish crowns and that Sweden provided iron ore and ball bearings to the Nazis. Swedish documents reveal that some Swedes actually sided with the Nazis and volunteered to fight for Hitler. Some Swedes were members of the Waffen SS and served in police batallions.

A committee was established by the Swedish government in 1997 to investigate the transfer of Nazi gold to Sweden during the war. It is reported that Sweden received 38 tons of gold from Nazi Germany (worth today US $430 million). Many Swedish companies, such as Ericsson, AGA and Hasselblad Cameras, as well as the country's paper and wood industries traded with Nazi Germany. Swedish jewelers bought stolen diamonds, which were smuggled into Sweden by civil servants working at the German legation in Stockholm.

An exhibition on Sweden and the Holocaust, opening in Lund, not far from where Chavka Folman-Raban enjoyed her first weeks of freedom, aims to shed light on this darker side of Sweden’s relationship to Nazism. The exhibition, accompanied by seminars and publication of new research, shows how Swedish industry benefited from the war and how Swedish scientific institutions were leaders in the fields of race biology and eugenic research. 

The exhibition also shows how Nazi ideals found Swedish sympathizers and how Sweden limited freedom of speech, and introduced immigration laws which turned away asylum seekers from Germany, many of whom were later murdered in concentration camps.

Never knew this.

How very chickenshit of them (if Spirtual's explanation for cozying up to Nazis is accurate). I mean... America (and Canada I might add) sent their sons abroad to fight for life and liberty on the very continent Sweden tucked their tails on.

Chickenshit/betraying our Norweigan and Finnish brothers or a correct decision to stay out of the war - the discussion about it will never stop here in Sweden. 

Fun fact: Only time I had to endure a "sweden hater" was when I lived in Oslo for a short while and stood in cue in a supermarket. The old man behind me heard me speaking swedish and started attacking me about how much he hated Sweden and how Sweden acted in the war and towards Norway. 

Should be noted that during our neutral stance we also helped the Allied.

Well, you should know that the discussion is settled in the rest of the world, and "correct decision" is not a phrase that ever gets used.

I do not think you are an authority or well advertised in what is being settled in the world or not regarding Sweden's decision to protect its country from war and its citizens from death.

And tell me again, where was the US before their own country got attacked? Why didn't you people come to the aid of Poland in 1939 if your're not chickenshits?

Why on earth would we defend Poland?  They were conquered in thirty days by two countries that had enormous armies.  1. No way we could mobilize our troops in the time period.  2.  No way we are taking on Germany and the Soviet Union. 3. At this point in the war we are minding our own business and enduring the Great Depression.
 I mean we eventually did get involved a little over two years later and fought all over the world.
Tell me again how the Swedish armed forces helped to defeat the Axis powers?

Lol. Two modern men having some kind of nationalistic pissing contest over what their countries did in 1941. Classic.

Surprise surprise!  In a thread set up to bash the USA for all it's faults...someone very willing to point out all the faults he sees and flying that Sweden flag high...you really wonder why someone began asking the tough questions? 

This whole thread is an embarrassment on so many levels.

You take this thread and your time on a message board to seriously. 

cincybearcat

Spiritual_Chaos said:

cincybearcat said:

PJ_Soul said:

mcgruff10 said:

Spiritual_Chaos said:

rgambs said:

Spiritual_Chaos said:

Thirty Bills Unpaid said:

mcgruff10 said:

I was just reading about on Sweden's role in World War 2 and found the following: Was Sweden really "neutral" during World War 2?  

Sweden's role in the Second World War had its darker side, it allowed the Germans to transit troops, supplies and communications through the country.

Sweden also profited from the Holocaust. It is known that Wallenberg's relatives made money converting Nazi gold into Swedish crowns and that Sweden provided iron ore and ball bearings to the Nazis. Swedish documents reveal that some Swedes actually sided with the Nazis and volunteered to fight for Hitler. Some Swedes were members of the Waffen SS and served in police batallions.

A committee was established by the Swedish government in 1997 to investigate the transfer of Nazi gold to Sweden during the war. It is reported that Sweden received 38 tons of gold from Nazi Germany (worth today US $430 million). Many Swedish companies, such as Ericsson, AGA and Hasselblad Cameras, as well as the country's paper and wood industries traded with Nazi Germany. Swedish jewelers bought stolen diamonds, which were smuggled into Sweden by civil servants working at the German legation in Stockholm.

An exhibition on Sweden and the Holocaust, opening in Lund, not far from where Chavka Folman-Raban enjoyed her first weeks of freedom, aims to shed light on this darker side of Sweden’s relationship to Nazism. The exhibition, accompanied by seminars and publication of new research, shows how Swedish industry benefited from the war and how Swedish scientific institutions were leaders in the fields of race biology and eugenic research. 

The exhibition also shows how Nazi ideals found Swedish sympathizers and how Sweden limited freedom of speech, and introduced immigration laws which turned away asylum seekers from Germany, many of whom were later murdered in concentration camps.

Never knew this.

How very chickenshit of them (if Spirtual's explanation for cozying up to Nazis is accurate). I mean... America (and Canada I might add) sent their sons abroad to fight for life and liberty on the very continent Sweden tucked their tails on.

Chickenshit/betraying our Norweigan and Finnish brothers or a correct decision to stay out of the war - the discussion about it will never stop here in Sweden. 

Fun fact: Only time I had to endure a "sweden hater" was when I lived in Oslo for a short while and stood in cue in a supermarket. The old man behind me heard me speaking swedish and started attacking me about how much he hated Sweden and how Sweden acted in the war and towards Norway. 

Should be noted that during our neutral stance we also helped the Allied.

Well, you should know that the discussion is settled in the rest of the world, and "correct decision" is not a phrase that ever gets used.

I do not think you are an authority or well advertised in what is being settled in the world or not regarding Sweden's decision to protect its country from war and its citizens from death.

And tell me again, where was the US before their own country got attacked? Why didn't you people come to the aid of Poland in 1939 if your're not chickenshits?

Why on earth would we defend Poland?  They were conquered in thirty days by two countries that had enormous armies.  1. No way we could mobilize our troops in the time period.  2.  No way we are taking on Germany and the Soviet Union. 3. At this point in the war we are minding our own business and enduring the Great Depression.
 I mean we eventually did get involved a little over two years later and fought all over the world.
Tell me again how the Swedish armed forces helped to defeat the Axis powers?

Lol. Two modern men having some kind of nationalistic pissing contest over what their countries did in 1941. Classic.

Surprise surprise!  In a thread set up to bash the USA for all it's faults...someone very willing to point out all the faults he sees and flying that Sweden flag high...you really wonder why someone began asking the tough questions? 

This whole thread is an embarrassment on so many levels.

You take this thread and your time on a message board to seriously. 

Not really...in fact most of the time people get made at me for making sarcastic comments.  Heil Sweden! 

Spiritual_Chaos

cincybearcat said:

Spiritual_Chaos said:

cincybearcat said:

PJ_Soul said:

mcgruff10 said:

Spiritual_Chaos said:

rgambs said:

Spiritual_Chaos said:

Thirty Bills Unpaid said:

mcgruff10 said:

I was just reading about on Sweden's role in World War 2 and found the following: Was Sweden really "neutral" during World War 2?  

Sweden's role in the Second World War had its darker side, it allowed the Germans to transit troops, supplies and communications through the country.

Sweden also profited from the Holocaust. It is known that Wallenberg's relatives made money converting Nazi gold into Swedish crowns and that Sweden provided iron ore and ball bearings to the Nazis. Swedish documents reveal that some Swedes actually sided with the Nazis and volunteered to fight for Hitler. Some Swedes were members of the Waffen SS and served in police batallions.

A committee was established by the Swedish government in 1997 to investigate the transfer of Nazi gold to Sweden during the war. It is reported that Sweden received 38 tons of gold from Nazi Germany (worth today US $430 million). Many Swedish companies, such as Ericsson, AGA and Hasselblad Cameras, as well as the country's paper and wood industries traded with Nazi Germany. Swedish jewelers bought stolen diamonds, which were smuggled into Sweden by civil servants working at the German legation in Stockholm.

An exhibition on Sweden and the Holocaust, opening in Lund, not far from where Chavka Folman-Raban enjoyed her first weeks of freedom, aims to shed light on this darker side of Sweden’s relationship to Nazism. The exhibition, accompanied by seminars and publication of new research, shows how Swedish industry benefited from the war and how Swedish scientific institutions were leaders in the fields of race biology and eugenic research. 

The exhibition also shows how Nazi ideals found Swedish sympathizers and how Sweden limited freedom of speech, and introduced immigration laws which turned away asylum seekers from Germany, many of whom were later murdered in concentration camps.

Never knew this.

How very chickenshit of them (if Spirtual's explanation for cozying up to Nazis is accurate). I mean... America (and Canada I might add) sent their sons abroad to fight for life and liberty on the very continent Sweden tucked their tails on.

Chickenshit/betraying our Norweigan and Finnish brothers or a correct decision to stay out of the war - the discussion about it will never stop here in Sweden. 

Fun fact: Only time I had to endure a "sweden hater" was when I lived in Oslo for a short while and stood in cue in a supermarket. The old man behind me heard me speaking swedish and started attacking me about how much he hated Sweden and how Sweden acted in the war and towards Norway. 

Should be noted that during our neutral stance we also helped the Allied.

Well, you should know that the discussion is settled in the rest of the world, and "correct decision" is not a phrase that ever gets used.

I do not think you are an authority or well advertised in what is being settled in the world or not regarding Sweden's decision to protect its country from war and its citizens from death.

And tell me again, where was the US before their own country got attacked? Why didn't you people come to the aid of Poland in 1939 if your're not chickenshits?

Why on earth would we defend Poland?  They were conquered in thirty days by two countries that had enormous armies.  1. No way we could mobilize our troops in the time period.  2.  No way we are taking on Germany and the Soviet Union. 3. At this point in the war we are minding our own business and enduring the Great Depression.
 I mean we eventually did get involved a little over two years later and fought all over the world.
Tell me again how the Swedish armed forces helped to defeat the Axis powers?

Lol. Two modern men having some kind of nationalistic pissing contest over what their countries did in 1941. Classic.

Surprise surprise!  In a thread set up to bash the USA for all it's faults...someone very willing to point out all the faults he sees and flying that Sweden flag high...you really wonder why someone began asking the tough questions? 

This whole thread is an embarrassment on so many levels.

You take this thread and your time on a message board to seriously. 

Not really...in fact most of the time people get made at me for making sarcastic comments.  Heil Sweden! 

PJ_Soul

America doesn't make the top 20 for health apparently. I would imagine that Americans might want to be very concerned about that.

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/02/these-are-the-world-s-healthiest-nations?fbclid=IwAR1BrLsDJD6ATbxvpWA7hq5omrgUfXDF34iPyrQTaMihKe9rm3XWWsV0K9M

brianlux

Another contender for greatest country in the world (come on, you know it's true!)-  Republic of Wadiya and leader Admiral General Aladeen. 

eddiec

Here's something that bugs me, and it could easily be rectified. 
I currently live in Ireland. When I go the supermarket, I bring the same two tote bags I've been using for the past few years. If you forget your bags, they charge you a small fee for each plastic bag you need or you can purchase a new reusable tote. This forces most people to bring their own reusable bags.

When I visit my parents in New York and go to the supermarket, (and I'm only using NY as a reference, I don't know how it is in other states), it's a horrific waste of plastic. A lot of aisles will have people who pack your bags, and they literally barely fill each bag before starting to fill another one. I'm talking like four oranges and they consider it full. One time I needed to pick up just a handful of things, so at checkout they started bagging them up. When I told them I didn't need a bag, the two people at checkout looked at me like I was a psycho.

OnWis97

eddiec said:

Here's something that bugs me, and it could easily be rectified. 
I currently live in Ireland. When I go the supermarket, I bring the same two tote bags I've been using for the past few years. If you forget your bags, they charge you a small fee for each plastic bag you need or you can purchase a new reusable tote. This forces most people to bring their own reusable bags.

When I visit my parents in New York and go to the supermarket, (and I'm only using NY as a reference, I don't know how it is in other states), it's a horrific waste of plastic. A lot of aisles will have people who pack your bags, and they literally barely fill each bag before starting to fill another one. I'm talking like four oranges and they consider it full. One time I needed to pick up just a handful of things, so at checkout they started bagging them up. When I told them I didn't need a bag, the two people at checkout looked at me like I was a psycho.

This is the case everywhere.  I bagged groceries at a grocery store when I was in high school and we were taught not to fill the bags very full.  Very few customers valued waste reduction as much as convenience and as such we wasted a lot.  If a grocery store charged for bags* they'd probably go out of business.  That was the suburbs in the early-to-mid-1990s.  Today I am in a city and I do see more customers bringing their own re-usable bags (probably a function of location and timeline) but for the most part, we just use, use, use.  I re-use my paper bags.  I figure I get 7 to 10 uses out of each before I wear them out.  If everyone did that, we'd be using less than 20 percent of the grocery bags we use.

"Convenience first" is as American as apple pie, though I don't know enough to say that we're worse than most other countries.

*I think there are a couple cities where they have to; San Francisco maybe?  But try that shit in Kansas, and you're done.

HughFreakingDillon

OnWis97 said:

eddiec said:

Here's something that bugs me, and it could easily be rectified. 
I currently live in Ireland. When I go the supermarket, I bring the same two tote bags I've been using for the past few years. If you forget your bags, they charge you a small fee for each plastic bag you need or you can purchase a new reusable tote. This forces most people to bring their own reusable bags.

When I visit my parents in New York and go to the supermarket, (and I'm only using NY as a reference, I don't know how it is in other states), it's a horrific waste of plastic. A lot of aisles will have people who pack your bags, and they literally barely fill each bag before starting to fill another one. I'm talking like four oranges and they consider it full. One time I needed to pick up just a handful of things, so at checkout they started bagging them up. When I told them I didn't need a bag, the two people at checkout looked at me like I was a psycho.

This is the case everywhere.  I bagged groceries at a grocery store when I was in high school and we were taught not to fill the bags very full.  Very few customers valued waste reduction as much as convenience and as such we wasted a lot.  If a grocery store charged for bags* they'd probably go out of business.  That was the suburbs in the early-to-mid-1990s.  Today I am in a city and I do see more customers bringing their own re-usable bags (probably a function of location and timeline) but for the most part, we just use, use, use.  I re-use my paper bags.  I figure I get 7 to 10 uses out of each before I wear them out.  If everyone did that, we'd be using less than 20 percent of the grocery bags we use.

"Convenience first" is as American as apple pie, though I don't know enough to say that we're worse than most other countries.

*I think there are a couple cities where they have to; San Francisco maybe?  But try that shit in Kansas, and you're done.

almost everywhere I shop now in Winnipeg you pay for plastic bags. we shop with big bins now that are made to fit the shopping cart. 

PJ_Soul

You pay for plastic in many stores in Vancouver too (including Walmart and most grocery stores, and of course Costco doesn't have any bags at all - they use cardboard boxes if necessary instead). I literally always have at least one large fabric tote with me though, rolled up in my purse. I must admit, I purposefully take plastic bags sometimes, because I reuse them for various things. Sometimes I find that a plastic bag is just really needed.

oftenreading

You can't get plastic bags where I get my groceries. You can get paper, for a fee, but I always bring my reusables. For small purchases, I don't even get a bag; it all goes into my panniers (when I'm cycling) or my backpack.

cincybearcat

So what do you all without plastic bags scoop your cat poop into?

PJ_Soul

cincybearcat said:

So what do you all without plastic bags scoop your cat poop into?

Yup, that's one of the things I reuse them for! But I can think of other options. I would imagine paper bags would be the most obvious solution... I never get any paper bags from anywhere though... They'd have to be really fucking strong, thick paper bags too. And surely increasing paper bag production by a massive amount isn't great for the environment either, to say the least. They do also have kitty litter Genies, where you just scoop directly into a sealed container, and then empty the whole container in the trash when it's full... I would like this option, except that if I empty big containers of cat piss and shit into the communal garbage bin in the underground parking lot, I think it would create such a stink that it wouldn't be appropriate... At this point, I feel like if I couldn't get plastic bags anywhere anymore, I'd actually have to buy them specifically for the kitty litter. Of course biodegradable ones. I'd rather not have to do that though. Why can't all plastic bags just be biodegradable?

jeffbr

Exactly. I reuse the plastic bags for things like dog shit. I also use it as an outer bag (to prevent leaks) for my paper bag I use for food waste which goes into a yard waste bin. So I'm hoping not to completely lose by supply of these handy bags, but I also rarely get new ones and have been working through my old stock. Many cities around me have banned them, and I'm sure a statewide ban is coming soon. I carry reusable bags in my trunk so I always have some to take into grocery stores. And I have a massive Ikea resusable bag that I keep in the trunk for Costco trips.

eddiec

PJ_Soul said:

cincybearcat said:

So what do you all without plastic bags scoop your cat poop into?

Yup, that's one of the things I reuse them for! But I can think of other options. I would imagine paper bags would be the most obvious solution... I never get any paper bags from anywhere though... They'd have to be really fucking strong, thick paper bags too. And surely increasing paper bag production by a massive amount isn't great for the environment either, to say the least. They do also have kitty litter Genies, where you just scoop directly into a sealed container, and then empty the whole container in the trash when it's full... I would like this option, except that if I empty big containers of cat piss and shit into the communal garbage bin in the underground parking lot, I think it would create such a stink that it wouldn't be appropriate... At this point, I feel like if I couldn't get plastic bags anywhere anymore, I'd actually have to buy them specifically for the kitty litter. Of course biodegradable ones. I'd rather not have to do that though. Why can't all plastic bags just be biodegradable?

Don't they have compostable bags for that?

Edit: Can cat poo go into compost?

PJ_Soul

jeffbr said:

Exactly. I reuse the plastic bags for things like dog shit. I also use it as an outer bag (to prevent leaks) for my paper bag I use for food waste which goes into a yard waste bin. So I'm hoping not to completely lose by supply of these handy bags, but I also rarely get new ones and have been working through my old stock. Many cities around me have banned them, and I'm sure a statewide ban is coming soon. I carry reusable bags in my trunk so I always have some to take into grocery stores. And I have a massive Ikea resusable bag that I keep in the trunk for Costco trips.

Yeah, plastic bags are sometimes just necessary. Things leak on the way home from the store sometimes, and that is so gross to have a pack of meat or milk or something seeping through a fabric bag. GROSS! I'm happy to way reduce how much I use them and to pay for them, but I don't want them to disappear altogether.

my2hands

To answer the question originally posed...

America is absolutely the greatest country on planet earth

brianlux

eddiec said:

Here's something that bugs me, and it could easily be rectified. 
I currently live in Ireland. When I go the supermarket, I bring the same two tote bags I've been using for the past few years. If you forget your bags, they charge you a small fee for each plastic bag you need or you can purchase a new reusable tote. This forces most people to bring their own reusable bags.

When I visit my parents in New York and go to the supermarket, (and I'm only using NY as a reference, I don't know how it is in other states), it's a horrific waste of plastic. A lot of aisles will have people who pack your bags, and they literally barely fill each bag before starting to fill another one. I'm talking like four oranges and they consider it full. One time I needed to pick up just a handful of things, so at checkout they started bagging them up. When I told them I didn't need a bag, the two people at checkout looked at me like I was a psycho.

Apparently voting in legislation to reduce plastic bags isn't going to work either.  I base that cynical comment on seeing almost the same number of people in the grocery store get new plastic or paper bags rather than bring their own.  Here in  California, we voted in legislation to make consumers have to buy a grocery bag (for a negligible amount of money) rather than outright ban them.  It blows me away how many people still won't take their own reusable bags to the grocery store.  And stores other than grocery stores don't have to charge for bags so their giving out by the millions every day.  Great example of how great we are, eh?

PJ_Soul

What I think is a much worse problem is the recycling industry in North America. SO much of the stuff we recycle doesn't actually get recycled just because the recycling centers don't have anywhere near the capacity that is required to handle it all. There is probably a 50/50 chance that what you're recycling is going to end up in a landfill anyhow. So really THAT has to be addressed and fixed first and foremost, not consumer habits. Also, there absolutely needs to be legislation when it comes to manufacturer packaging. It should be the law that ALL packaging has to be recyclable. But again, that will only be useful if the recycling industry goes through an honest to god revolution.