[ealgeone]

One correction to the article....the bags were never free. They’re a cost factored in the price of groceries sold at the store.

[Dan in Wichita]

A few years ago, I bought 1000 of the plastic bags from Sam’s for $10.00, equating to one cent per bag. Imagine how little it cost per bag for a bulk buyer like Wal-Mart.

[AnotherUnixGeek]

One correction to the article....the bags were never free. They’re a cost factored in the price of groceries sold at the store.

Maybe, but they never made the price of the bag clear back then. In California, if you don't bring your own bag, you now get charged 10 cents extra for a paper bag.

[zeugma]

One correction to the article....the bags were never free. They’re a cost factored in the price of groceries sold at the store.

Right, but probably not a dime each. More like fractions of a cent when you're buying in bulk like a supermarket would.