In an apparent effort to counter the culture of abundance, increasingly more Americans devote themselves to “saving the planet.” In “Green” Seattle, for example, Mayor Greg Nickels has deemed using plastic grocery bags simply unsustainable and, therefore, subject to harassment by (believe it) the plastic-bag police!

The Bible celebrates humans as the very crown of God’s creation—not a blight on it. Be sure, compulsory green living is nowhere found in the Bible. This world view evades Communist China, where a merchant forfeits his business license if caught doling out plastic bags. In South Africa, the culprit is jailed for up to ten years! Now, Seattle Public Utilities will hire inspectors who routinely check stores and restaurants for strict compliance.

Thumbs Down A new mini-bureaucracy to carry out the plastic-bag mandate will include full-time tax auditor and administrative specialist to oversee collecting the 20-cents-per-bag fee. Seattle’s proposed ordinance goes so far as to forbid stores from paying any portion of the Green Fee imposed on its customers; moreover, the $250 fine for said violators is the same fee exacted for unlawful dumping of solid waste.

Thumbs Up Economist Walter Williams reminds us that “truly compassionate policy requires dispassionate analysis.” That is to say, when it comes to environmental health, science trumps passion; and reason overrides extremism. In free societies, concerned citizens make voluntary choices in the best interest of stewardship. It’s worked for big Aussi retailers, and it can work for us.