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'Eco-friendly' straws contain potentially toxic chemicals – posing a threat to people and wildlife.
(theconversation.com)
this post was submitted on 30 Aug 2023
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Environment
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The conclusion (no straws at all are better) makes sense, but... The Conversation can be kind of gratuitously contrarian. "WELL ACTUALLY there are forever chemicals in paper straws!" Ok, why? "Maybe because they're in the soil where the bamboo was grown or in the paper that they were recycled out of" Ok this sounds like a "forever chemicals are fucking everywhere" problem not a "paper straws are super bad" problem.
But "oh no eco friendly is actually eco HOSTILE" is a clickbaitier take.
"No straws at all are better" makes sense until you remember they are vitally important for a lot of disabled or elderly people with mobility/coordination issues. Some people need straws, or they can't drink independently, or can't drink without spilling, and the current normalization and availability of straws means that they can use what is for them an accessibility device without anyone questioning it.
And straws are hardly an issue compared to most other things.
Anyway yeah, agreed that "this supposedly eco friendly thing is actually eco hostile, therefore we shouldn't try for eco friendly" is a nonsense take.
Good point.