[1_1xdev]

Half measures still do _something_

They did reduce plastic pollution, as you admit.

Was it the most effective regulation to pass to reduce plastic pollution by the greatest possible amount? Not at all

[LawTalkingGuy]

They're often counterproductive. People feel accomplished, and finished with the half-measures and they often don't bother investigating the results or the ongoing requirements.

[SantalBlush]

I'm not sure that this is true. Maybe you could give some evidence that this is the most common outcome.

[panzagl]

I was visiting San Diego soon after the fees went into effect and they were dealing with a cholera outbreak because the homeless no longer had plastic bags to defecate into. So you have a miniscule effect on plastic pollution in exchange for a large effect in a different area.

[ryan_lane]

The solution to this is to provide bathrooms, not plastic bags.

[killyourcar]

This is not salient, it's like saying "when I removed pressure from the wound, the patient started bleeding out. Therefore removing pressure is bad and to fix the wound we should ask Re apply pressure" The pressure is a stopgap, you need to address the underlying problem (in this case by ensuring adequate bathrooms) rather than simply reacting to the surface level concern.

[seventytwo]

That is a wild unindented consequence.