No .. I don't want kos to take down the bag tax ad. Well, I would like to see it gone. But I guess he has the right to put up any ad that he gets paid for.
I gather from the previous diary that not all are seeing the bag tax ad. Perhaps it just appears for California users. So, a bit of background: the California assembly has passed a bill that imposes a 25 cent tax on bags for groceries and some other stores, with very small stores exempted (I forget the exact wording, but that's the jist). It now goes to the Senate, and some organization (no doubt a consortium of bag manufacturers) has put out these insidious ads, on the radio and (apparently) on blogs such as DailyKos, opposing the tax.
The ad on the radio makes the claim that this tax will cost the average family of four upwards of $400 a year.
Well, I just have to vent about this. The fact of the matter is, you do not have to pay 25 cents a bag, and you do not have to spend $400 a year.
All you have to do is spend about $5.00 or so AND BUY YOUR OWN CANVAS BAGS.
You just have to BRING YOUR OWN BAGS TO THE STORE, and you will not have to worry about the 25 cents!!
That's the whole idea of this tax: not to soak California families attempting to eke out a living. Not to make money for the state of California.
THE WHOLE IDEA IS TO GET YOU TO BUY YOUR OWN BAGS, which, in my humble opinion, is a GREAT idea! Store bags, especially the insidious plastic ones, get into the environment, into the oceans, and cause marine creatures to ingest them, causing great suffering. Some of them also disintegrate into tiny pieces (eventually) and foul the environment in ways not easily dealt with.
Therefore, I support this bill, and the ad just infuriates me.
There, I've concluded my rant. Please, California folks, I hope you listen. I've been using my own bags for over a year, and it's NOT a hassle.