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Is it Better Not to Know?

2021-08-27 · letter vlog · Hank · 3:54 · watch on YouTube

Topic: Science & nature · mode: Personal essay · tags: timely hook

Prompted by a New York Times tweet that a cotton tote may have a larger environmental impact than 50,000 plastic bags, Hank argues that people can choose not to care, but those who care must orient their care on reality: cotton is not automatically green, reusable bags matter because throwaway things are bad, and ocean plastic needs international fixes, since simplicity is almost always a lie.

What is said

The parts of the video and what is said in each (★ — how much it matters to the video).

00:00:00 — The New York Times tweet on cotton totes and replies saying people would rather not know

  • ★★ Hank saw a New York Times tweet being shouted about on Twitter and quote-tweeted the article, saying he didn't know why people were upset: would you rather not know at all? — 00:00:00 · The New York Times, Twitter
  • ★★ The New York Times tweet states that, according to a 2018 study, an organic cotton tote must be used 20,000 times to offset the overall impact of its production, equal to daily use for 54 years. — 00:00:04 · The New York Times

00:00:22 — Two options (not care, or care based on reality); cotton totes versus plastic bags, packaging, and which bags to use

  • ★★★ Some replied they would rather not know; Hank understands, but argues there are two options: not care, or pay attention and care based on reality. — 00:00:22
  • ★★ Hank cites the claim that a cotton tote bag might have a larger environmental impact than 50,000 plastic bags, information he thinks he should have access to. (hedged) — 00:00:22 · The New York Times
  • ★★ Hank is unsure the figure is entirely accurate: he thinks the study used a big, heavy, thick cotton tote; a tote with less cotton has less impact, though maybe a shorter lifespan. (hedged) — 00:00:22
  • ★★★ Being made of cotton, or organic cotton, does not make something good for the environment: growing crops is resource-intensive. — 00:00:51
  • ★★ Thinking cotton is always good because it is natural leads people to put everything in cotton bags and use cotton as if it were disposable. — 00:00:51
  • ★ Hank once got shoes in a box inside a cotton bag. — 00:00:51
  • ★★ Extra packaging can convey high quality, care for the customer and eco-friendliness that have nothing to do with the product or reality. — 00:01:20
  • ★ Hank notes SciShow did an episode about this. — 00:01:20 · SciShow
  • ★★★ The best option is reusable totes with much less impact than cotton, especially strong vinyl ones made of tent-like fabric. — 00:01:20
  • ★★★ Unless you already have totes: the ones you already own are the greenest option. — 00:01:20

00:01:49 — Where to draw the line on caring; changing our minds on evidence; ocean plastic as a problem with international fixes; simplicity is a lie

  • ★★ Or buy bags at a secondhand or thrift store, which probably has bags otherwise destined for a landfill. (hedged) — 00:01:49
  • ★★★ The broader question is where to draw the line between what he cares about and what he doesn't; Hank draws it at the things he is caring about. — 00:01:49
  • ★★ People upset by the article probably own cotton totes, the visceral reason for defensiveness; Hank has a bunch, got from caring or as conference swag. (hedged) — 00:01:49

  • ★★★ Many people lack space to care, which Hank understands; but if we cared enough to think a cotton tote eco-friendly, we should change our minds on contrary evidence and orient care on reality. — 00:02:19

    “If we’re going to care, we have to orient our care based on reality.”

  • ★★ That is complicated and means understanding that many things aren't really about me, you or us, a kind of un-American idea. — 00:02:19 · United States

  • ★★★ People use reusable bags fearing their bag ends up in the ocean, but the reason to use one is that making things to throw away is a bad idea. — 00:02:48
  • ★★★ Ocean plastic is about 50% fishing equipment, and almost all the rest comes from places without robust waste management systems like those in the US. — 00:02:48 · United States
  • ★★★ Treating a reusable tote as the fix for ocean plastic ignores that the fix is international and involves people we have no direct control over: a bummer, but good to know. — 00:03:17
  • ★★ Such things are not hard to find out: look past vague feelings about the vibe into reality, asking whether an idea is sold to sell something or will really have positive impact. — 00:03:17

00:03:46 — Sign-off

  • ★★ Some of what we find will be complicated, but simplicity is almost always a lie. — 00:03:46

    “simplicity is almost always a lie”

In the description and comments

  • ★★★ The description says we are asked to care about everything, which Hank cannot and should not do; different people should care deeply about different things rather than many caring superficially. — video description
  • ★★ Everyone caring a little about ocean plastic made people focus on straws instead of international fishing regulations, reducing poverty and waste infrastructure abroad. — video description
  • ★ The description ends by demanding that no one put his shoebox in a cotton bag. (playful) — video description

Threads in this video

Mentioned

Central: Marine plastic pollution · reusable shopping bag

Also: appeal to nature · SciShow · The New York Times · Twitter · United States

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