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> the focus should've been on producers not consumers on producers AND consumers. They're not exclusive. Producers have deceived, but consumers have been all t

by spodek 6y ago

> the focus should've been on producers not consumers on producers AND consumers. They're not exclusive. Producers have deceived, but consumers have been all too happy to suspend skepticism when buying things once the producer puts the word "recycle" on it somewhere. Consumers overwhelmingly skip the reduce part. Everyone I talk to about it, when they drop their defenses, says somewhere inside they knew they were participating but wanted to believe recycling was more benign than they knew it was. They just wanted their latte without thinking about it too much. I'm not removing responsibility from producers or government. Consumers have a lot of power. Single-use plastic at least isn't hard to avoid with practice, at least to drop 90 percent of it. Just avoiding packaged food, with a few years practice the last I emptied my garbage was December and I expect my next emptying in 2022.

nkingsy 6y ago
Maybe make some videos or something. My tiny California trash can is full to the brim every week, not for lack of trying. I’m fairly sure I’m in the top 10% of giving a f in my country. Culture has huge impact so I don’t want to discourage individual action, but this won’t change until conservation becomes the default.
- spodek 6y ago
  I posted a video on my blog here: https://joshuaspodek.com/year-emptied-garbage https://joshuaspodek.com/year-emptied-garbage This post explains more: https://joshuaspodek.com/emptying-my-household-garbage-for-the-first-time-in-2019 https://joshuaspodek.com/emptying-my-household-garbage-for-t...
  - brunoff 6y ago
    There's someone with a nickname similar to yours (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:NYCJosh https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:NYCJosh) that after reading the article, updated wikipedia's plastic recycling article - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_recycling#Deception_of_the_public https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_recycling#Deception_of.... I would like to thank him.
germinalphrase 6y ago
Are you able to purchase, for instance, liquid dairy products without packaging? Have you had to cut out whole categories of food?
- dragonwriter 6y ago
  > Are you able to purchase, for instance, liquid dairy products without packaging? You can purchase them with non-plastic packaging (glass particularly; cardboard cartons use plastic liners.)
- spodek 6y ago
  Regarding beverages, things changed a lot when I learned that for most of human existence, after weaning, our ancestors drank only water. I've come to see how I used to look at other beverages as entitled, the result of marketing. I drink some other beverages, but mostly water, and I've found my total joy from drinking higher. Sort of like how in college I drank a lot of beer. Now I sip whiskey sometimes -- less alcohol, more total appreciation. That said, I read someone write about soy milk makers and did my usual practice of checking Craig's List until I saw someone selling one for $15. I make a batch or two a week from dried bulk soybeans. For food, note that a few years ago I never cooked from scratch and ate out maybe five nights a week, so all that follows I learned by doing. I buy what's in season at the farmers market, what the CSA delivers, and from the bulk section. I buy from the same farmers so we've become friendly and they give me a lot of free vegetables -- the ugly ones they take back to compost or the greens others decline when they buy beets or radishes and don't know they're edible. My impression is that my variety has gone up since I'm always buying something that hasn't been in season for ten months, but my friends probably think it's gone down since I make my famous no-packaging vegetable stews https://joshuaspodek.com/food-world-reviews https://joshuaspodek.com/food-world-reviews so much. I rarely eat out of season or non-local foods at home. In the winter after the last cabbages, that means a lot of beets, parsnips, rutabagas, sweet potatoes, etc. I'm fermenting more and started sprouting dried beans, which should increase my greens in the winter. Frankly, I've never eaten more delicious, while saving money and connecting with farmers, friends, and family more. What started as trying to pollute less ended up giving a lot more than I expected.

by spodek 6y ago

nkingsy 6y ago

Maybe make some videos or something. My tiny California trash can is full to the brim every week, not for lack of trying. I’m fairly sure I’m in the top 10% of giving a f in my country. Culture has huge impact so I don’t want to discourage individual action, but this won’t change until conservation becomes the default.

spodek 6y ago
I posted a video on my blog here: https://joshuaspodek.com/year-emptied-garbage https://joshuaspodek.com/year-emptied-garbage This post explains more: https://joshuaspodek.com/emptying-my-household-garbage-for-the-first-time-in-2019 https://joshuaspodek.com/emptying-my-household-garbage-for-t...
- brunoff 6y ago
  There's someone with a nickname similar to yours (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:NYCJosh https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:NYCJosh) that after reading the article, updated wikipedia's plastic recycling article - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_recycling#Deception_of_the_public https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_recycling#Deception_of.... I would like to thank him.

germinalphrase 6y ago

Are you able to purchase, for instance, liquid dairy products without packaging? Have you had to cut out whole categories of food?

dragonwriter 6y ago
> Are you able to purchase, for instance, liquid dairy products without packaging? You can purchase them with non-plastic packaging (glass particularly; cardboard cartons use plastic liners.)
spodek 6y ago
Regarding beverages, things changed a lot when I learned that for most of human existence, after weaning, our ancestors drank only water. I've come to see how I used to look at other beverages as entitled, the result of marketing. I drink some other beverages, but mostly water, and I've found my total joy from drinking higher. Sort of like how in college I drank a lot of beer. Now I sip whiskey sometimes -- less alcohol, more total appreciation. That said, I read someone write about soy milk makers and did my usual practice of checking Craig's List until I saw someone selling one for $15. I make a batch or two a week from dried bulk soybeans. For food, note that a few years ago I never cooked from scratch and ate out maybe five nights a week, so all that follows I learned by doing. I buy what's in season at the farmers market, what the CSA delivers, and from the bulk section. I buy from the same farmers so we've become friendly and they give me a lot of free vegetables -- the ugly ones they take back to compost or the greens others decline when they buy beets or radishes and don't know they're edible. My impression is that my variety has gone up since I'm always buying something that hasn't been in season for ten months, but my friends probably think it's gone down since I make my famous no-packaging vegetable stews https://joshuaspodek.com/food-world-reviews https://joshuaspodek.com/food-world-reviews so much. I rarely eat out of season or non-local foods at home. In the winter after the last cabbages, that means a lot of beets, parsnips, rutabagas, sweet potatoes, etc. I'm fermenting more and started sprouting dried beans, which should increase my greens in the winter. Frankly, I've never eaten more delicious, while saving money and connecting with farmers, friends, and family more. What started as trying to pollute less ended up giving a lot more than I expected.