[smokingfrog]

Plastic bags don't pollute -- people do.

[D-fendr]

And paper bags kill trees.

Best not to eat.

[Lancey Howard]

Austin, lol.
Texas’ own little piece of San Fransicko.

[JohnBrownUSA]

“To stave off a possible ban in 2008 , six large retailers agreed to try to voluntarily reduce the use of plastic bags, but that program hasn’t been effective enough, Leffingwell said.”

The reason for limited government is to allow people the CHOICE in how they want to live their lives.

And if the program wasn’t ‘effective enough’, then this means the people CHOSE plastic bags to be used for their groceries.

Just goes to show that big government politicians can be so prickly stupid.

[Dapper 26]

So plastic bags take up more room than paper bags? If so, than why does it takes 7 pallets of paper bags to replace one pallet of plastic bags? And what about the poor ‘ol spotted owl and old growth trees that was the cause of switching from paper bags to plastic bags while ruining the logging industry in the Pacific Northwest? Are we looking for another industry to ruin with bogus claims?

[dixiechick2000]

The same debate is happening in Portland, OR as we speak.

The funniest thing is that when I moved here almost 20 years ago, they banned the paper bag because they killed trees, and substituted the plastic bag.

Now, they are endorsing the reusable bag.....that comes at a price.

For those who don’t want or can’t afford the reusable bag, I wonder if they will replace the plastic bag with the paper bag? After all, the paper bag is biodegradable.

Environmentalists.......they are so funny!

/s

[cynwoody]

Isn't Austin where Whole Paycheck Markets got started? They've had a paper-only bagging policy for some time now.

Annoys me, because that's where I buy most of my sustenance.

[Lazlo in PA]

Yeah. Those paper bags really biodegrade faster than the plastic ones. Especially when everyone throws them out in a big plastic garbage bag anyway.

[CitizenUSA]

First they came for the toilets, but since I lived in a house with a toilet that worked, I didn't care. Then they came for the shower heads. I knew how to disable the water restrictor, so I didn't care. Then they came for the cigarettes, but I was a nonsmoker. It was no matter for me. Then they came for the margarine, but I prefer butter. Again, no reason to care. Then they came for the plastic bags, but I use paper. And so it goes in the land of the free...

[bronxville]

They’ve been doing this in Europe for a few years. What’s happening there is coming here...global standardization.

[FrankR]

Why aren't the sensible people of Austin out in force at the courthouse/Mayor's office about this nonsense. We all have enough to deal with by having a marxist in office on the cusp of destroying our nations credid rating, and this wee-willie-winky mayor now is playing the plastic-bag shuffle.

Europeans take their own bag to the store, but usually only buy a minimum number of items. My weekly groceries would take up 30 of those "personal bags" they hawk at the stores.

Not to mention the hundreds of other uses for plastic grocery bags.

I want all these enviro-nuts to move to a desert island, BAN everything, and biodegrade themselves to the light of a spaghetti bulb.

[DH]

What are they going to do about the plastic wrapped used pampers in the parking lots?

Use corn shucks?

[RayChuang88]

I’m surprised they haven’t done this at least a decade ago.

[Condor51]

Twenty years ago these same NUTS were demanding we all stop using paper bags and switch to plastic. It was "for the environment".

morons.

[Buckeye McFrog]

Keep Austin Weird is more than just a slogan. It’s a way of life apparently.

[Ron H.]

Paper or Plastic sir?

Actually if the grocery stores I shop at really did offer me a choice between the two I wouldn't care about this issue. But since they don't (or better yet, won't) give me a choice at all I for one would prefer paper over plastic anytime! I'm not for government mandated (no) choice but I can reluctantly accept the 'carrot and stick' approach to a sensible solution of giving me the consumer, a reasonable choice of paper or plastic.