Letters to the Editor, Opinion
May 26, 2026

Plastic-Free!

Carol Moné  

To the Editor:

As elders, our mission is to set the table for the upcoming generations — our biological family and planetary family. As such, we’ve not only got the forks on the wrong side of the plates, but the plates are currently upside down and the napkins besmirched. We’ve got some work to do!

One of the problems facing future inhabitants of our planet is the love child of the petroleum industry — plastic. Oh yes, we don’t like it, but that doesn’t seem to dissuade anybody from going to Costco and buying 57 products wrapped in three layers of the stuff.

So how can we reduce plastic use and still manage the forced requirements of modern life?

Glad you are interested, because Plastic-Free July is coming up! Every year, more and more people get on board, and this year you can, too. Check out plasticfreejuly.org to see how you can participate this year.

Carol Moné, Trinidad

Other News
Declaring Our Independence
July 2026 - America's 250th Birthday, News
Compiled by Michael Pazeian 
June 26, 2026
In the early 1770s, American colonists became convinced that the English Parliament intended to take away their freedoms. In fact, the Americans saw a pattern of increasing oppression and corruption all around the world. Indeed, the British were determined to bring their unruly American subjects to heel and b...
July 2026 - America's 250th Birthday, News
By Allan Katz 
June 26, 2026
I can still sing the battle songs of every branch of America’s armed forces. I am also usually the only person in our crowd who, when we gather around the Christmas tree, knows the words to the second verse of just about every Christmas carol. I went to public school, had no religious education, but I’m prett...
ASK THE DOCTOR: The Last Straw
Columnists, Jennifer Heidmann's Column
BY JENNIFER HEIDMANN, M.D. 
June 26, 2026
It can be hard to believe that we have any power to change the course of climate change. Each time I get one of those soggy paper straws with my smoothie, I am reminded why we love plastic so much. How can it make any difference to use just one plastic straw? Maybe it cannot. But during this Plastic-Free July...
AGING IS AN ART: I’m Sorry
Columnists, John Heckel's Column
Aging is an Art — By John Heckel
June 26, 2026
As an elder Baby Boomer, I want and need to apologize. I could list the various generations, but let me simplify and address my apology to all current and future-not-yet-named-generations that are dealing with or will have to deal with the consequences of my actions or, more often, my lack of actions. I am so...