Everyone knows the stereotype of the "extreme left" hippy dippy vegan pro-choice anarchist that refuses to touch a plastic fork because of the chemicals Monsanto put into the plastic to brainwash us into killing honeybees.
Everyone knows this stereotype because when someone says "I don't want to use plastic" it ignites a vitriol that seems out of place in people in this very thread. I don't think I've ever once seen Roger Caffin "troll" anyone. If anything, he's often the antithesis, and his calm response is a good example of this non-confrontational attitude.
And yet, he did pretty much call out the OP for being a plastic-fearing liberal.
I sometimes consider judging people who are very obviously in a camp that makes no logical sense to me. It's easy. If I were to cast judgement on someone doing something "silly" like avoiding all animal products or plastics to their own daily mental anguish, I'd be in the majority. But then I look at my life, and all the ways I do things that others consider "ridiculous." There are individuals in my family who just simply CANNOT COMPREHEND that I'd ride my bike in the road, with traffic. I commute 100 miles a week, and they see it as either a suicide attempt, or a rejection of beautiful, flawless vehicle infrastructure (may it live forever).
Do I like being judged like this? God, no. It's so annoying. I just want to ride my bike and be happy, but there are others who cannot help themselves but to impose their beliefs on me. We all have something like this, something others judge us for. Perhaps its wild camping, perhaps 4-wheeling in the woods, or maybe its something like using metal instead of plastic.
Still with me?
Don't judge other people for rejecting plastic. Rejection and judgement like that is a poisonous thought process in which a "holier than thou" attitude prevents you from seeing the real joy you'd feel if you never concerned yourself with the "why" in another person's lifestyle. Let others do as they will, and you'll find the same courtesy often extended to you when you break the false mold of "normal."
-Max