5 ms·

Half measures still do _something_ They did reduce plastic pollution, as you admit. Was it the most effective regulation to pass to reduce plastic pollution b

Half measures still do _something_ They did reduce plastic pollution, as you admit. Was it the most effective regulation to pass to reduce plastic pollution by the greatest possible amount? Not at all

LawTalkingGuy 4y ago
They're often counterproductive. People feel accomplished, and finished with the half-measures and they often don't bother investigating the results or the ongoing requirements.
- SantalBlush 4y ago
  I'm not sure that this is true. Maybe you could give some evidence that this is the most common outcome.
  - karaterobot 4y ago
    The evidence is that the major sources of plastic pollution were not put under further regulation subsequent to the regulation of this minor source of plastic pollution, even though the threat they present has not diminished.
  - ZeroGravitas 4y ago
    It's an article of faith for people in the libertarian climate change denial community, because they get funded by the people who sell the natural gas that is used to make them: https://reason.com/tag/plastic-bags/ https://reason.com/tag/plastic-bags/ https://reason.com/tag/straws/ https://reason.com/tag/straws/ Just a quick glance at those links shows they are just a little obsessed about this.
panzagl 4y ago
I was visiting San Diego soon after the fees went into effect and they were dealing with a cholera outbreak because the homeless no longer had plastic bags to defecate into. So you have a miniscule effect on plastic pollution in exchange for a large effect in a different area.
- ryan_lane 4y ago
  The solution to this is to provide bathrooms, not plastic bags.
- killyourcar 4y ago
- seventytwo 4y ago
  That is a wild unindented consequence.
- killyourcar 4y ago
  This is not salient, it's like saying "when I removed pressure from the wound, the patient started bleeding out. Therefore removing pressure is bad and to fix the wound we should ask Re apply pressure" The pressure is a stopgap, you need to address the underlying problem (in this case by ensuring adequate bathrooms) rather than simply reacting to the surface level concern.

LawTalkingGuy 4y ago

They're often counterproductive. People feel accomplished, and finished with the half-measures and they often don't bother investigating the results or the ongoing requirements.

SantalBlush 4y ago
I'm not sure that this is true. Maybe you could give some evidence that this is the most common outcome.
- karaterobot 4y ago
  The evidence is that the major sources of plastic pollution were not put under further regulation subsequent to the regulation of this minor source of plastic pollution, even though the threat they present has not diminished.
- ZeroGravitas 4y ago
  It's an article of faith for people in the libertarian climate change denial community, because they get funded by the people who sell the natural gas that is used to make them: https://reason.com/tag/plastic-bags/ https://reason.com/tag/plastic-bags/ https://reason.com/tag/straws/ https://reason.com/tag/straws/ Just a quick glance at those links shows they are just a little obsessed about this.

panzagl 4y ago

I was visiting San Diego soon after the fees went into effect and they were dealing with a cholera outbreak because the homeless no longer had plastic bags to defecate into. So you have a miniscule effect on plastic pollution in exchange for a large effect in a different area.

ryan_lane 4y ago
The solution to this is to provide bathrooms, not plastic bags.
killyourcar 4y ago
seventytwo 4y ago
That is a wild unindented consequence.
killyourcar 4y ago
This is not salient, it's like saying "when I removed pressure from the wound, the patient started bleeding out. Therefore removing pressure is bad and to fix the wound we should ask Re apply pressure" The pressure is a stopgap, you need to address the underlying problem (in this case by ensuring adequate bathrooms) rather than simply reacting to the surface level concern.