Beacon Hill Plastic Ban

Beacon Hill is currently debating a bill that would make it illegal to use plastic shopping bags. The bill is intended to protect the environment by having consumers use reusable shopping bags and refrain from plastic and paper. Provisions of the bill would call for a nonrefundable 10-cent fee for every paper or plastic bag used until August 19. The money will be kept by the store.

This legislation is well-intended but it will not solve all of the problems. I ask for paper bags when I go shopping and recycle the paper bags. There are times I will ask for plastic bags and that is when there is nothing to line the wastebaskets in my house. I reuse the plastic shopping bags. They can come in handy.

It is also less plastic being used. Reusing the plastic bags means you are not buying more plastic bags for trash. There are people who use the plastic bags for trash bags in their homes and their cars. They are used for diaper bags. They are used for transporting things when they travel. Some people even use them for lunch bags. Getting rid of the plastic bags is well-intended but it will open doors for more plastic products to be consumed.

I understand the fee. It is meant to get people to use reusable bags but why not have more recycling services instead of literally nickel and diming people who are shopping. Give people more of an incentive to recycle and reuse instead of looking for another way to cost them money.

Don Cherry just the latest Casualty

Don Cherry is known as much for his hockey knowledge as he is for his flamboyant suits. His segments on "Hockey Night in Canada" were popular throughout the country not only for his insight but also for the "What's he going to say next?" element. Cherry's unpredictability made for some extra work for Co-Host Ron MacLean who would have to jump in from time to time in case "Grapes" was getting to close to the edge.

MacLean offered no such services last Saturday when he and Cherry appeared on HNIC's popular "Coach's Corner" segment where Cherry's insight frequently ranged from Left Wing Locks to what local eatery had the best wings and included everything in between. Nothing was out of Cherry's peripheral.

Grapes' delving into non-hockey issues was on the forefront on what turned out to be his swan song with CBC Television. Saturday's opinions involved Canada's Remembrance Day. Although he did not specifically mention immigrants, Cherry left little doubt who he was referring to when he mentioned, "You people come here. You love our way of life..." Don Cherry was fired by CBC for what the Network called, "divisive remarks that do not represent our values or what we stand for."

MacLean's original reaction to Cherry's opinion was a nod and a thumbs-up. MacLean later apologized for the segments and said he, "sat there and did not respond," despite looking right at his co-host and nodding as Cherry made his comments.

Don Cherry is the latest example of not being able to say something without offending someone. His employer made a knee-jerk reaction just incase there would be protestors outside Headquarters and wanted to show the entire country there is no place for intolerance.

By the way, what did Grapes do that was so hateful and vitriolic? Did he tell the immigrants to leave Canada? Did he tell foreigners to go back to where they came from? No. He reminded people that they love Canada's way of life they should pay a couple of dollars for a poppy to wear to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice. He said nothing derogatory about the immigrants. He just reminded them about those who fought to defend Canada's freedom and the meaning of the poppy in Canada and why they should do it.

Cherry did not mean any ill will to foreign-born or native-born Canadians. He just wanted to remind the people watching of the real reason for the holiday. Some Canadians took it the wrong way. Sportsnet took it even more wrong than that.

Local Eatery Leaves Another Void

Stoughton is a middle-class town on Massachusetts' South Shore located off Route 24. Washington Street is a main drag that will take you to routes 93 and 95 via the neighboring town of Canton. There is a lot of fun things to do in town but unfortunately, you can't seem to find a lot of restaurants to sit down and eat. Stoughton, like a lot of towns, has it's share of fast-food joints and there are a few diners where people can get a good breakfast or an early lunch but when it comes to a place you can have dinner, the town is lacking.

The two places that come to mind for dinner are Amelia's and Foleys. Foley's is a family-friendly restaurant that serves great comfort food. Amelia's is an upscale restaurant that doesn't disappoint. Both restaurants are at opposite parts of town. In between is Cheng-Du for Chinese food and various pizza and sandwich shops. A sports bar "Last Shot" was in Stoughton before shutting down for good and LaStoria's, an Italian restaurant, wasn't far from downtown before it closed down. The building was briefly taken over by Morrell's, a barbecue joint that never disappointed. Morrell's started as a food truck that operated at various points in town before moving into the former Lastoria's. Recently Morrell's announced on its Facebook page it was shutting down its restaurant and going back to operating its food truck and would continue to serve food at various locations including private parties.

This is disappointing to me for two main reasons. First, I like going to Morrell's. The menu is rather limited but what they offer is incredible. If you haven't tried it, you should. Find their food truck and send me a nice "Thank You" note when you finish. You're welcome.

The second reason is that Stoughton doesn't have much in the realm of restaurants. It is saturated with fast-food restaurants and sandwich shops. Stoughton is a town that always has events and festivals year-round. The events don't cost you anything. All you have to do is show up and have a good time. Someone along the way is picking up the tab and if it isn't the town itself, it's a small business that wants to give back to the community. A place to sit down for a meal would be a great way for people who might be hungry but tired to cook and their kids probably want something to eat and there's nothing at home. I hope the town of Stoughton has a plan to bring restaurants in. There has been a lot of talk about revitalizing the downtown area. A place for people to get together would go a long way toward that revitalization. It will bring more money into the local economy. That never hurts.

Lots of Errors in this Era

A pedestrian was killed by a self-driving Uber car in Arizona last year. The accident prompted a 20-month investigation by the NTSB and re-kindled the debate over self-driving cars.

The main point of the report released by the National Transportation Safety Board was that Uber's technology was not able to detect "jaywalkers" and can only detect people crossing the street when they are in crosswalks. A spokesperson for Uber has reported technology improvements now allows for cars to detect pedestrians and bicycle riders who do not follow the rules of the road.

Anyone who has driven a car just once knows there are drivers, bike riders, and pedestrians who do not follow the rules of the road. How does a company that wants to introduce self-driving cars not account for that before the first models are rolled out? There are always people in a rush. People who are late for work. People who are tired and want to get home. Everyone, myself included, has had a situation where they roll through a stop sign, speed to get where they need to be, pass cars legally or illegally because of some type of emergency and they need get there.

It's not right but people do it. You get out of Driver's Ed armed with the rules of the road and think you are ready to take on the Urban Jungle, then you encounter your first rotary, roundabout, or traffic circle and watch all the law and order fly out the window because someone forgot to tell you they are more important and don't need to follow the rules.

Now let's get to the "User Error" part of the story. Where was the car's driver/passenger in all this? According to a story in AZCentral, she was watching a video on her phone; Not paying attention to the road. Why should she? The car was driving.

Is there some type of human override in a self-driving car? Is there a way for a person in the car to apply a brake or steer if there is a situation the car cannot anticipate? Again, how does the manufacturer not allow for these scenarios when designing or building the car? Was there a horn that could have been sounded? Did the passenger look up from time to time to check out her surroundings?

Driving for me is fun. Sometimes I am the passenger and that allows me to do things that would take my eyes and mind off of the road but if I am the only one in the vehicle, I am paying attention to my surroundings. I don't see the fun or need for self-driving cars, personally. Tragedies like the one that occurred in Arizona are precisely why. There are too many unknown factors when being out on the road that can arise when you are getting from point A to point B. If we are going to continue with technology and "Progress" entering our lives and making things easier and convenient for us, there needs to be an allowance for the unknown. We can all start by looking up from our technology from time to time and check out what or who is around us. There's a big world out there with a lot of people trying to live their lives.