Reply #76: I'm not "obsessed," but butts are a major environmental problem: [View All]

[ima_sinnic]

cigarette butts are small, granted, but they are ubiquitous and do not break down for 12 or even more years because of the type of acetate in the filters. As they break down, they release a plastic powder that goes into the soil, then into the primary decomposers such as worms and insects, hence into the food web and water supply--eventually reaching humans, who are well laden with the stuff by now I am sure, everywhere in the world.

They are the most littered item, there are billions of them. Educate yourself: http://www.cigarettelitter.org/

So, yeah, blah blah blah about the "right wing agenda." I heartily agree that things people do that have an impact on others and the planet should be taxed. The cost has gotten too high for people to live without regard for the impact of their actions and behavior. I've always lived by the philosophy, "what if everybody did that?" What if everybody in the world who had a car drove a Hummer? Mindlessly sucking a limited resource until it's drained--how smart is that? Petro products should be taxed heavily for the same reason. With cigarettes, there is a cost in human and environmental health--shouldn't those causing it pay that cost?