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Waxed straws used paraffin which is made from petroleum anyway, and they still get soaked through and collapse like the shitty PFAS coated straws. I know becaus
by ch4s3 4y ago
Waxed straws used paraffin which is made from petroleum anyway, and they still get soaked through and collapse like the shitty PFAS coated straws. I know because they’re still made and I’ve used one, and the attic you posted mentions that draw back.
Straws made from plant stalks simply aren’t suited to mass distribution. They aren’t uniform, can’t easily be sanitized before packaging, they’re fragile, and still leak and get soaked.
The problem isn’t “corporate greed” it’s that there aren’t good alternatives to plastic for disposable straws.
- incompatible 4y agoAn alternative would be to do without a straw. Is it so hard to drink without one?
- guelo 4y agoThe demand comes from car culture. Drinking in cars is difficult without lid and straw.
- throwaway0a5e 4y agoYou ever try eating your fast food on the train/subway/bus. The same situation exists there too. The problem isn't the cars. The problem is that we don't all live in some fantasy where people have time to sit down and eat their food and drink not on the go. If it wasn't the straws people would be complaining about the plastic coffee cup lids.
- guelo 4y agoI haven't, my local public transit bans food and drink.
- Teever 4y agoSo how did people manage to eat on the go prior to the invention of straws and plastic lids?
- rad88 4y agoThe first hot dog man provided nice white gloves for his customers to hold the wieners and toppings with. They were supposed to be returned after use, but evidently they were too fancy and many customers would hang onto them. His wife suggested serving the wieners in a bun instead.
- bobthepanda 4y agoA lot of cultures have food wrapped in leaves (e.g. lotus or banana or corn). Like zongzi or tamales. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zongzi https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zongzi
- cscurmudgeon 4y agoIs there any evidence to this? Or is the source just irrational car hate.
- ch4s3 4y agoI just like a straw in an iced coffee while walking around.
- guelo 4y agoI used to also but then I started thinking how obscene it is that the piece of plastic will be around for thousands of years just so I can have slightly more convenience for an hour or two.
- ch4s3 4y agoI guess. It’s a minimal amount of material that’s made from a waste product anyway. Pottery and glass last just as long, or longer. Something made of cellulose that breaks down more easily would be better, so long as it comes from agricultural byproducts. *edit I’m saying this might be better because some light plastics like straws end in in storm drains and on road sides, so something that breaks down over time into organic compounds might be preferable.
- eru 4y agoWhy would that be better? Plastic somewhere in a landfill doesn't bother anyone, does it? Not more than pottery and glass in a landfill. And later cultures could dig it up and burn it, if they wanted to.
- Grimburger 4y agoPeople drink coffee in cars all the time without straws. It's perfectly fine with just a lid and a small opening. Drinks with takeaway food here have been using that style of cup for years now.
- feet 4y agoOne legitimate use is people with handicaps. Otherwise I totally agree, just drink from the cup
- a_imho 4y agoAdd toddlers to the list as well.
- amalcon 4y agoAsking people addicted to sugary drinks to forego straws entirely would result in serious dental issues.
- saurik 4y agoI am drinking something without a straw right now and maybe I just have a sophisticated technique but I seem to be putting the liquid into my mouth back over my tongue to the same overall place it goes when using a straw?
- everdrive 4y agoThis might be the most decadent problem ever: - Straws use disposable plastic - Replacement paper straws are coated with a toxic chemical - Straws are only necessary so that we can drink sugary drinks - Sugary drinks don't even taste that good, and also cause diabetes and tooth decay
- scythe 4y agoThe problem isn't really petroleum. We have more than enough petroleum for straws. And the carbon in paraffin is not in the atmosphere, which is good. The problem with plastic straws, if you believe their opponents (whose claims I have not evaluated), is that they are persistent pollutants that harm animals. If paraffin-waxed paper straws are not, that's an improvement, petroleum or no.
- ch4s3 4y agoThen we should put them in landfills.
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- smolder 4y agoYou said it yourself, there aren't good mass distributable alternatives to plastic straws. I never thought banning them was a meaningful step towards sustainability, but maybe straws should be labor intensive and left for the service industry to figure out as opposed to being mass distribution-friendly. That'd be preferable to more PFAS, at the least.
- KSteffensen 4y agoGet a metal re-usable straw like the one used for yerba mate?