What if we find a new Earth?

(Henry Spencer) wrote in message ...
Of course, some of that has gone downhill in recent decades. :-) Many
things which used to be packaged in glass jars or metal tins are now in
thin paper or plastic containers which are of much less long-term use.
(Raise your hands, everyone who's actually seen a milk bottle. :-))

Come to Germany. They've just introduced a deposit on almost all
liquid containers, to try and put them back on a level footing with
glass, which has had a large scale return deposit scheme for sometime.

As a result, most milk, beer and other liquids come in glass bottles
with a deposit. Sales of canned beer have halved (which is OK, since
tin cans damage the taste of any quality beer), and the can industry
and the retailers are rather upset.

In the UK, milk sales are now dominated by plastic bottles, which are
much worse for the environment than Tetrapak. Meanwhile, the
Government shouts at local government to increase recycling, even
though local government has no power whatsoever to influence how
things are packaged in the supermarket.

on 16 Jul 2003 05:00:39 -0700, Alex Terrell sez:
` (Henry Spencer) wrote in message ...
` Of course, some of that has gone downhill in recent decades. :-) Many
` things which used to be packaged in glass jars or metal tins are now in
` thin paper or plastic containers which are of much less long-term use.
` (Raise your hands, everyone who's actually seen a milk bottle. :-))
`
` Come to Germany. They've just introduced a deposit on almost all
` liquid containers, to try and put them back on a level footing with
` glass, which has had a large scale return deposit scheme for sometime.
`
` As a result, most milk, beer and other liquids come in glass bottles
` with a deposit. Sales of canned beer have halved (which is OK, since
` tin cans damage the taste of any quality beer), and the can industry
` and the retailers are rather upset.
`
` In the UK, milk sales are now dominated by plastic bottles, which are
` much worse for the environment than Tetrapak. Meanwhile, the
` Government shouts at local government to increase recycling, even
` though local government has no power whatsoever to influence how
` things are packaged in the supermarket.

Well, not that it particularly matters, but an organic dairy has
been soldiering on out here since the days of home milk bottle
delivery, and is now enjoying something of a rennaissance, so
the old style glass milk bottles can be seen in all the supermarkets,
and we had one in the house a while back cuz I bought a bottle
to show my son what old fashioned non-homogenized, standard
pasteurized milk tastes like (and how it goes sour, rather than
rotting).


--
================================================== ========================
Pete Vincent
Disclaimer: all I know I learned from reading Usenet.

On 16 Jul 2003 04:14:04 -0700, (John Ordover) wrote:

At the beginning of this year, I made some predictions that I dubbed
"feckless". Those were intended mostly as humor. But here's a serious
prediction (and one I've made before) -- or, if you will, call it a
declaration of faith: I will see routine, affordable space travel in my
lifetime.

Chris W.

It is a declaration of faith. But without the kind of breakthrough
you agree is rare, it won't happen. It is not within the reach of our
current knowledge of physics and economics.

So you keep insisting. That is _your_ declaration of faith.

Chris W.