Water, Whoa! Alert to Common Sense
Recently I read in the paper that a food coop is planning to ban bottled water in the coop. Wow, what a statement. I disagree with this ban for a number of reasons, and you should too, if you are really environmentally-minded. In the Brooklyn Paper, dated March 8, 2008, there was an article about the Park Slope Food Coop. They claim they are definitely banning bottled water in the coop.
Disagree With That Ban:
- Banning the bottles gives us less choices. We are all adults and we have a right to choice.
- The substance that they are banning is water, no soda, not diet drinks, not soft drinks and not ice tea -but water. Water is essential to all life on this planet, but soda and ice tea are not essentials. They are not banning wine or beer but just water.
- You need bottled water when you go hiking or when you are in the car with children or babies. It makes more sense to ban soda bottles than it makes to ban water bottles but that would probably financially ruin stores so they opt for banning water.
- With the ban on water on, consumers most likely will buy more liquids that contain chemicals (diet soda and diet juices). And that in the long run will be more unhealthy for our society. (I am not a doctor but I have that much common sense to know that when we add chemicals, rather than sugar to our bodies, our bodies suffer greatly. (Diabetes is another story. If you have diabetes, then you need to curtail your intake of sugar. What I am speaking here about is for ordinary people who have no disease or illness.
- A better consumer education program and having consumers wiliingly cut down on bottled water is a better idea than banning it completely in the coop or in any other store.
You have your own opinions but clearly ask yourself this, why did they pick on water –the basic essential of all life on this planet? And now, when just recently on the news, pharmaceuticals were found in many of our water systems across America, why ban bottled water? If you must ban the plastic bottles then ban the bottles that house soda, soft drinks, juices, beer and alcohol. That is a better move. Or better yet, do not ban the bottle but educate and re-educate consumers. Education is always so much better than force. What is your opinion?
