Tom explains the problem with plastic bags
Come on out Fraidy Kat. It’s me!
Oh, hi Tom. It’s nice to see you again so soon.
Hi Fraidy. I’ve been spending time in that new park. Mostly I stay up in the trees listening to the humans and sometimes my new human friend is there. He tries to explain things to me, but he’s as puzzled by humans as I am.
You know, the more I learn about them the more they disturb me. I wonder how they even survive. They are such babies!
Humans don’t seem small and cuddly to me.
No, Fraidy Kat. I mean that they think like babies and they do all kinds of destructive things like huge children who only think of themselves. This “freedom” idea that humans always talk about means that they can do whatever they want and never have to clean up the damage.
So here’s what got me so depressed while I was listening to them for a few days: first of all do you know what plastic bags are?
Do you mean those white things that my human brings stuff home in? They scare me when they make that crinkly sound and I run away.
Well, the problem is a lot worse than that. Humans have been making such a mess in this world that all the rest of us are in serious danger. They get these bag things every day and they wind up everywhere. There is no animal that can eat them and many animals strangle in them every day. They even float around in that big lake they call The Ocean, harming the fish.
I like fish.
That’s right, Fraidy Kat, we all like fish. But humans are killing off everything on the earth, including the fish.
The bags are only one part of the mess that humans make, but if they can just use fewer of them it will begin to help a little bit.
OK. So those people I told you about, The Greens, have a lot of ideas about how to help and one of them is to charge money for the bags instead of giving them out for free.
Why are they free?
I don’t know Fraidy. I guess someone thought it was a good idea at the time, but it turned out to be a horrible idea. The Greens’ idea is that if bags aren’t free everyone will have their own bags and they will be able to use them over and over. So the people who make the rules for The City — I think they’re called “The Council” — made a new rule that stores would charge people 15 cents for each bag.
Is that a lot?
No, it’s a very small amount, but now the Republicans are telling people that it’s not fair and they have made up all kinds of silly reasons why they don’t want to do it. They have these things on the radio called “talk shows”, where people call in to whine about every little thing they don’t like. A Republican is always there to tell them why they should exercise their right to be immature and selfish.
I can hardly believe it! They act like children who don’t want to clean up their room before they can go out and play.
When I was a kitten my mommy cleaned me. But then she taught me how to lick myself and to bury my poop so I could learn to take care of myself.
That’s right — just one more example of how animals are smarter than humans. These Republicans teach people to be resentful and petty, but the most shocking thing about them is that they like to attack anyone who has any ideas about how to clean things up. They want their followers to yell and scream and throw tantrums instead of doing one small thing to help us all.
But if it’s a small thing, why is it so upsetting?
That’s my whole point, Fraidy! A lot of rich humans are making money by causing the damage in the first place. If ordinary humans won’t pay a tiny bit of money to do the right thing, what are the chances of the rich ones parting with any of their precious money? Humans will keep on poisoning our world until they and the rest of us are all poisoned.
That’s it Tom. I’m heading back under the bed.
Good night Fraidy Kat.
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link:
http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080506/MULTIMEDIA02/80505016
