Microplastics in everything

by Mary Fahnestock-Thomas, Hamilton

Today I heard a new friend telling another new friend that there is a law “coming down the pike” that will take all control of our children’s health away from us.

I don’t believe our government can pass any laws that are not supported by the people we elect to be our representatives, so the onus and responsibility are on us. Besides, the federal government is too big and slow to just land something like that on us without our having an opportunity to question it.

Big companies and corporations, on the other hand, are not subject to the same checks and balances as the government and put stuff over on us all the time by using attractive ads and cute commercials that tell us they are making our lives better, and we don’t think much about it because “the government is the problem.”

Are you aware that in 1970 CEOs made 20-30 times what the average worker did, and now they typically earn 300-400 times as much? Meanwhile, the federal minimum wage in 1970 was $1.60, which in today’s money would be about $12.10, but in fact today’s federal minimum wage is $7.25.

Are you aware that in 2023 Jeff Bezos, head of Amazon, made just under $8 million per hour? That his company is taxed at about 6% annually, whereas the average middle-class American probably pays over 20%?

Are you aware that only ten (10) corporations own most of the consumer goods we all buy?

Are you aware that only five (5) corporations control over 50% of the credit cards in the US?

Starting with President Reagan (1981-1989), government regulation of corporate monopolies in this country has been increasingly ignored. And since so few companies now own and manage so much of our world, they can fix prices and interest rates pretty much how they want to. 

At the same time, those corporations began to think their share-holders were more important than us consumers, and instead of keeping our prices down, they have focused increasingly on their profits. Our gas prices, for example, do not reflect that Big Oil is making the highest profits ever.

I could go on – for instance, are you aware of “shrinkflation”? Where the cereal or cracker package and the price are the same as always but the content is less, maybe 14.5 ounces instead of the original 16? Some brands of white vinegar are now only 4% acidity, and household pickling requires at least 5%. A lot of canning and pickling may spoil if we’re not paying attention.

My point is that, perhaps especially here in the West, tradition and hearsay encourage us to mistrust the federal government, but I think it’s what corporations are getting away with that really affects us and our families personally. 

Please be curious and use the internet to look into things before accepting partisan scare tactics.