Would you like paper, plastic or neither?

Okay, in today's San Francisco Examiner (as well as local television news stations), the vote to TAX San Franciscans 17-cents per bag by the San Francisco Commission on the Environment was postponed until Jan. 2005. If this resolution passes, they say they will try to put it before the Board of Stupidvisors to get it passed.

The grocery stores and some small business owners came out against this idea because, ultimately, it's going to be passed on down to the consumer, which is going to hurt everyone. The idea behind this tax is that plastic bags create a lot of litter and are a public nuisance as well as a health hazard (for babies). So, they want to charge the consumer the "privilege" of using a "luxury item" such as the grocery bag. Mind you, this will apply to both plastic and paper bags. Granted, there is a lot of litter consisting of plastic items; however, shopping bags are not the biggest culprit, in my opinion.

Depending upon which part of the city you look at in The City, you may see that a lot of it is paper waste (i.e. newspapers, napkins, fliers, etc.), aluminum cans, glass bottles and well-worn plastic bags. So, why not tax all of those other recyclable items, too? Hell, since our local liberal government is so gung-ho about taxing us for everything (we even have a payroll tax), why not tax us for recycling? Sheesh!

Getting back to the issue about the tax on grocery bags. I think it's a stupid idea. Most people I know tend to use them as garbage bags in wastebaskets, pick up doggie biscuits (for those of us who are dog-owners), carry our lunches to work and other sundry tasks instead of tossing it by the wayside. A lot of it does come from the homeless (when it comes loose from their shopping carts and their makeshift camps) and the casual person who doesn't give a crap about being responsible. I've seen plenty of those here in the city, and it irks me to no end that they can just feel that they can cavalierly litter anywhere, anytime they please.

Also, if the board, in its infinite lack of wisdom, does decide to pass this tax on grocery bags, I hope they don't have a conniption in the check out line when they get hit with that tax. After all, they live in this city, too, and they have to eat sooner or later. That will probably mean trips to the local supermarket. So, in short, if they balk at the register, I hope they think twice about passing a tax on the populace. Remember, NO ENTITLEMENTS TO SPECIAL TREATMENT!