What's up with all the trash?

[zombieon101]

I think I may have a constructive solution. I went to CalTrans website and they have some staggering statistics about the amount of trash removed each year and the astronomical cost.

What if California develops free refuge centers in every SoCal county? I just realized that it is free to residents in Maryland, maybe that is why there is no trash there.

Maybe I am just over simplifing the situation?

[SandyCo]

I'm honestly puzzled at the amount of trash on our highways and streets. I want to say it's because so many Angelenos are renters, and as such, many of us have less respect for our environment, but that's such a poor rationalization.

Free refuse centers would probably help, but I think you'd still have careless, stupid people who think the world is their ashtray, trashcan, etc.

Originally Posted by zombieon101

I think I may have a constructive solution. I went to CalTrans website and they have some staggering statistics about the amount of trash removed each year and the astronomical cost.

What if California develops free refuge centers in every SoCal county? I just realized that it is free to residents in Maryland, maybe that is why there is no trash there.

Maybe I am just over simplifing the situation?

[sleepyCA]

Originally Posted by SandyCo

Free refuse centers would probably help, but I think you'd still have careless, stupid people who think the world is their ashtray, trashcan, etc.

Agree Sandy. Litter is one of the things that really sets me off, because it indicates a true lack of consideration for both yourself and other people. Another example of similar behavior is leaving your shopping cart behind when you drive away; is it that hard to walk 15 feet to put it up? These seem to be very west-coast specific phenomena; I've lived in Colorado, Tennessee, Missouri, and Oklahoma, and while it happens in those places too, it's much more common here.

For those trying to make this a racist thread (and hating on "cholos" IS racist and unacceptable behavior, especially if you are a frigging cop) and using KOREANS as an example of a positive, I recommend that you visit South Korea. Seoul is one of the dirtiest cities on earth, worse than Tijuana imho. That bit tells me that it is not the "culture" OR the ethnicity that makes the people on that one particular street act the way they do, because obviously the Korean-Americans you observed did not bring that bit of Korean "culture" with them when they came. It's something else entirely, something about the people themselves-- the individuals, and yes, the community enclaves.

Still, in the 4 years I have lived here, I've seen everything from 20-ish girls at the beach walk away and leave gatorade bottles/plastic chardonnay bottles, starbucks cups, etc at the beach, to 30-something lawyer-types in BMW's to hispanics in 1980's toyota trucks randomly throwing things out windows. Never seen a jack-in-the-box bag, but I've seen plenty of wealthy jerks (and plenty of non-wealthy jerks) break the law. And yes, when I see it, I honk so they know at least someone saw it (and that goes for cigarette butts too).

On a side note, one problem I have seen is that often the public trash receptacles here are full to the point of being overflowing, especially at events. If you go to a park there's a good chance there wil be nowhere to put your trash even if you look for a good spot to put it, and I've been amazed at how badly places on his coast plan for crowds. it's summer, it's the beach, there should be a trash can every 100 yards, but often there isn't, or it hasn't been emptied in 6 hours and is spilling over.

[adysmom]

Originally Posted by zombieon101

I think I may have a constructive solution. I went to CalTrans website and they have some staggering statistics about the amount of trash removed each year and the astronomical cost.

What if California develops free refuge centers in every SoCal county? I just realized that it is free to residents in Maryland, maybe that is why there is no trash there.

Maybe I am just over simplifing the situation?

Their are some places in California their is no charge to dump. Dump fees are picked up in your taxes. So you see very little piles of trash dumped in out of the way places. But I don't think that will help tossing things out of a car wile driving down the road.

[cynwldkat]

Originally Posted by SandyCo

It is not a fact. Like I said, I've seen people of all persuasions throwing stuff out their car windows. There are people who care and people who don't.

Also, to blame all of this on Mexicans ignores the fact that there are a lot of people here who came from Central America - Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala, etc. However, let me state yet again that I've seen plenty of white people throwing trash wherever.

I'm about to shut down this thread due to its blatantly racist overtones.

I stand corrected on this one. Yes, there are many countries South of the CA border and often times all the blame for many things goes directy on Mexico. I personally wasn't talking about race as much as culture. Even people born and raised in the US and are white are to blame also. As many have pointed out---the world is their trash can. I have an idea....perhaps if the common public could actually collect rewards for seeing and documenting those who toss out trash it could become a way to make money and cut down on the trash!! I don't know if there still is a reward like there use to be but they made it so difficult to actually prove not many even tried. If those concerned carried a camera and could document it they could collect the reward? Just a thought! Maybe it would make those slobs that are doing the littering a little more concerned about getting caught. I know where I live now in NC they have a phone number like the 911 (not 911 of course) where a person can report anyone tossing out trash. Add a reward and I'll bet you'd see more people getting involved!! Personally I could care less about the reward---my reward would be to see those trashers caught!!

[Delron]

Originally Posted by CESpeed

I defy you to find trash on the ground in Baldwin Hills. Not the Jungle, Baldwin Hills.

Okay, does Slauson count, since it runs straight through the center of Baldwin Hills? What about La Cienega? I'm there RIGHT NOW. Do you want me to grab a camera and get some shots of the trash in the street?

Sure, Baldwin Hills for the most part is a very nice spot, and that's specifically why I said GHETTO people, NOT black people. But look at the major streets that run through it and compare them to the major streets of affluent communities.

It's ghetto people of ALL stripes - white, black, hispanic, Asian, that litter, and it's mainly their poor upbringing and lack of civility. Unforunately the percentages of such trash run MUCH higher among the poor, and here in LA, the blacks and Latinos happen to make up the lion's share of the poor.

These litterbugs need to be called on their behavior when they litter and told that it's NOT okay. Ignorance is no excuse for breaking the law and they should know better.

And to the genius who thinks it's "racist" to "hate on cholos", since when are "cholos" a race? If anything, they are a criminal element within a certain ethnic/nationality group. Is it "racist" to hate terrorists? Yeah, I guess gangbangers deserve our love too. Well, why don't you put up a couple of them out on early release in your house for just a weekend and get back to me, eh champ?

[asielen]

What gets me the most is when you go into a parking lot and see fast-food bags scattered around the lot. It seems to suggest that they feel that all they care about is their own property and not the betterment of society as a whole. No respect for the environment, only care about their own self-interest—not having trash in their car. Even though they could wait until they find a trash can and throw the stuff away.