People are fighting climate change with a zeal, using metal straws! At last, it appears that the way to save the planet is not by dealing with industrial waste or the carbon footprint that we love to measure but by making sure that we do not sip that one final drop from a plastic straw. “I can’t limit the pharmaceutical factories churning toxins,” complained 25-year-old Sara carefully positioning her set of reusable bamboo forks for an Instagram story. “But I can guarantee the defenceless fish never have to choke on inedible straw ever again.
That is what counts.” While parents and educators can no longer keep a straight face at how ill-advised this prattle sounds, the specialists are not far behind. “It cheers me up to think about a revolution of steel straws,” said Altaf Ahmad, an environmental expert, as he burst into laughter.
While Sara is sipping her frappe through a metal straw at a coffee shop in Srinagar, she might be in the thirteenth outfit she has bought this season and all her outfits have arrived through an orchestra of cardboard boxes smelling of express delivery. This is metaphorical and literal because the irony of her statement is thick! “You know, saving the planet is not easy,” Sara admits, just as she mindlessly clicks through online shopping sites that contain mainly fast fashion clothing. “At least I’m not using steel straws, right? Baby steps!” But until those baby steps include directly addressing the larger questions, one is l.
