I've never been particularly impressed by arguments against bottled water -- especially the ones that compare the price of a gallon of water out of the tap and a bottle of watter (you're not paying for the water, you're paying for the convenience). Anyway, here's a very compelling argument for bottled water. To the extent that people are picking up a bottle of water instead of a bottle of coke or even (high sugar) juice, it's a major public health coup. Aguanomics:
...I think that the consumption of bottled water needs to be viewed in terms of long term dietary trends in the U. S.
Since roughly the 1930's... there has been a long term decline in per capita alcohol consumption. Hard liquor consumption just fell off the table and beer is in slow decline. Wine consumption in flat at best. There are just some really significant changes going on and they are really long term trends.
What did grow during that time period was consumption of soft drinks.
Just think of what might happen if the anti-bottled water crowd had to get into a debate with their intellectual fellow travelers -- the public health scolds. Oy! The mind boggles.
As ridiculous as it sounds, bottled water helped me kick my soda addiction. I used to need to drink at least 2 cans of Coke a day. And then I started buying bottled water and quite cold turkey on the soda. Even if I conceptually realize that I could have just used tap water, having the bottles made a mental difference.
It no longer matters now (I don't buy bottled water any more), but for a while it made a huge difference.
Posted by: Mike Masnick | August 19, 2008 at 02:44 AM
Thinking about how this view might upset Naomi Klein makes me smile.
Posted by: Lee D | August 19, 2008 at 09:39 AM