Look, I get that plastic is convenient. I use it too. But that's exactly the point - we need the government to step in because the market won't fix this on its own. We're talking about 8 million tons of plastic hitting the ocean every year. That's not a minor inconvenience, that's a planetary emergency. Single-use plastics hang around for hundreds of years after maybe 30 minutes of use. That math makes no sense. And recycling? It's mostly a myth - only about 9% of plastic actually gets recycled. The rest goes to landfills or shows up in fish we eat. A ban forces companies to innovate. Look at plastic bags - where they've been banned, people adapted fast with reusable options. The industry always screams about job losses, but we've seen it work in places like Kenya and parts of Europe. It's not about eliminating all plastic. It's about stopping the stuff we use for five minutes that poisons everything for centuries.

Papucka, you're right that plastics are cheap and durable - that's actually the problem. Their low cost hides the massive environmental price tag. And I hear you on recycling. But here's the thing: we've been waiting decades for recycling to get its act together, and it's still a joke. Only 9% gets recycled. That's not a fix, that's a fantasy. You blame Asia and Africa for the pollution, but that's convenient finger-pointing. The West shipped our plastic waste there for years. We created this mess. A ban isn't about hating plastic. It's about admitting the system is broken. If we keep relying on recycling getting better someday, we're just kicking the can down the road - a plastic can that'll outlive us all. Innovation happens when we force change, not when we wait for it.

Papucka, you're asking what replaces plastic overnight, and that's fair. But that's a false choice - nobody's saying flip a switch tomorrow. What a ban does is send a clear signal to the market: adapt or die. And they always adapt. We've seen it with bag bans, with straw bans. Suddenly, paper straws exist, compostable containers show up, and companies start actually investing in alternatives instead of just talking about it. You're right that we're learning more about recycling every day. But that's exactly why we can't wait for some perfect future solution. The plastic we're choking on right now will still be here in 400 years. We don't need to replace every single-use plastic instantly. We need to start phasing out the most useless, destructive ones now and let innovation catch up. The industry won't change unless we force it. That's just how capitalism works - it follows the path of least resistance.

You're right, I'm not calling for a total ban tomorrow. But that's the thing - even gradual phase-outs need legislative teeth. Without government mandates, companies will drag their feet forever. They've had decades to reduce plastic and chose profits instead. You agree with me on the gradual approach, so where do we disagree? Is it the timeline? Because the science is screaming at us that we don't have time for voluntary measures. Every year we wait, another 8 million tons hits the ocean. I think we both want the same thing - less plastic pollution. But hoping industries will eventually do the right thing? That's wishful thinking. They'll only change when the cost of not changing becomes higher than changing. That's what a ban does - it creates that cost. It's not about punishing people, it's about realigning incentives so the cheapest option isn't also the most destructive.

Look, I've seen this play out in my own neighborhood. When my city started charging for plastic bags, people grumbled for a week, then suddenly everyone had reusable bags. That's the thing about bans - they work because they change behavior at the point of decision, not through education campaigns that barely move the needle. You're saying the problem is uneducated consumers. I get that logic, I really do. But we've been running awareness campaigns for decades. Beach cleanups, documentaries, school programs. And still, people choose convenience over conscience every time. Because that's human nature. The real issue is the system, not the individual. When plastic is the cheapest, easiest option, even informed people will default to it. We need to flip that - make the sustainable choice the default, not the noble exception. That's what a ban does. It's not about punishing anyone. It's about admitting that waiting for consumers to save us is like waiting for smokers to quit on their own. Sometimes the government has to step in and change the rules of the game.