Where I live in Maryland, the Chesapeake Bay is filled with thousands of tons of plastic garbage. Hurricane Bertha passed through a couple of weeks ago, dislodging tons of plastic from among the reeds, much of it now still floating on the surface in quiet coves. Even the remotest parts of the planet, islands in the arctic seas, are littered with plastic, an omnipresent reminder of corporate power and a rigid devotion to unfettered free markets. While they are large, these chunks of plastic endanger amphibians, birds, and mammals who mistake them for food. As they break down into microscopic dimensions, these plastics become a hazard to fin fish, lodging in their gills.
Plastics are a major source of dioxins, perhaps the major source.
And of course medical researchers have identified clusters of disease in humans living near the petrochemical plants where plastics are manufactured. Recently, it has been learned that many plastic products exude chemicals that disrupt the hormones of reptiles, amphibians, birds, fish and mammals, including humans. No doubt about it, plastics make living things, including people, sick, and they kill. Plastics are a kind of corporate graffiti celebrating the consolidation of wealth and power, and the arrogant human-centeredness, which, together, lie at the heart of the libertarian vision. No wonder Mr. Tierney esteems plastics so.