Spare A Thought For Bubble Wrap

31st December 2022

omparing Christmas today with Christmases past, David Waugh and Laura Williams eloquently explain that we ordinary Americans in 2022 are far wealthier than were ordinary Americans of just a few decades ago. We are fortunate indeed to live where and when we do!

But evidence of our enormous prosperity, and of its source, is found not only in that which during the holiday season is seen - gifts, decorations, food, and holiday entertainment - but also in that which is not seen... or, rather, in that which is ignored and discarded.

I'm talking about packaging.

Even the simplest packaging - such as the paperboard box that held the shirt you received as a gift - required innovative design and efficient production. The top half of the box fits like a glove over the bottom half. Each corner is a sharp 90 degrees. The paperboard is just the right weight for holding your shirt. A lesser weight would be too flimsy; a heavier weight would have been unnecessary and, thus, wasteful of material.

Not impressed? Then take a look (if your trash-disposal company hasn't yet carted it away) at the Styrofoam or molded-plastic shell that held and securely protected your new laptop computer or flatscreen TV, with the screen wrapped for further protection in a delicate translucent material. And perhaps your new countertop kitchen appliance was held firm in its box by air-filled pillows or honeycomb wrap paper.

Ponder for a moment the different kinds of packaging materials that you, eager to hold and behold each of the gifts that Santa brought, excitedly pulled out or cut away, and quickly discarded as trash on Christmas morning. Try to recall the many different shapes, sizes, and textures of the outer boxes. Each one was perfectly designed to hold its contents. No heavy cardboard or foam rubber was wasted to package your new pair of jeans; a thin and pliable, but surprisingly tough, piece of plastic did the job. In contrast, that wonderful new pizza oven came to you in an outer box of rigid cardboard that encased a thick shell made of molded paper pulp. Being made in China, the heavy oven and its fragile parts had to be packaged securely for shipping to you abroad.

And voila! Each part is present and intact.

Read the full article from the American Institute for Economic Research HERE

www.aier.org
Interesting articles that need some thought and remember it is a think tank and has an agenda.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Institute_for_Economic_Research