Litter Apocalypse

Six people threw their garbage on the ground in my presence over the
last two weeks. I'll describe four of the situations in detail and how
I reacted to the experience. Author disclaimer: Littering is a symptom
of acedia/indolence/sloth, one of the seven deadly sins. I experience
revulsion to an extreme degree when I see people in the act of
littering or discover evidence of said offense.
Case Study 1: Drive Thru Disgrace. I pulled up to the drive thru
window of the burger joint to pay and collect my bagged artery
blockage. I noticed the mini-van in front of me had been asked to
"pull ahead", presumably because they ordered more pseudo-food than
could be stored under the radiation lamps at any one time. I
successfully paid without dropping my change (Yes!) and received my
order. The mini-van still idled in front of me but there was space
aplenty for me to squeeze around. That's when the passenger's hand
emerged from an open window and tossed a grease-laden wrapper to the
paved driveway. The stained paper landed softly on the faded yellow
lines of the drive thru boundary. I slowly curled around the minivan,
unable to believe what I witnessed. The passenger, a sixty-ish man
with white hair and bad teeth observed me looking at him with disdain
and mouthed the question "What?". I drove on, unable to think of any
response to the perp.
Case Study 2: Fast Lane Launch. Riding along at 75mph in the center
lane of the highway, I heard it approach only at the last second. The
interior of my car reverberated with loud music until the roar of the
passing pick-up truck got my attention. It sounded like the monster
trucks I cheered for as a kid, watching them crush junk cars. Remember
Bigfoot? The truck swerved into my lane and then quickly
course-corrected. The driver must have been distracted by his
passenger who proceeded to open window and toss a fountain soda cup in
my direction. The cup hit the nose of my car. Lid and straw lifted
straight up, suspended in the wind for a moment like a graceful kite
and then was swept past the car. The cup disappeared under the car
after impact. The ice and remaining liquid detonated in a burst
resembling an array of peacock feathers, flat across the bottom and
objects lancing out in all directions. A clear liquid covered my
windshield. The truck accelerated away. I drove on in disbelief.
Case Study 3: No Excuse. I'm sitting in my car, parked in a space on
the street taking a conference call. In the Dunkin Donuts parking lot
across the street, a grey Chevy Impala with a spoiler pulls into a
spot close to the coffee shop entrance. A man wearing glasses, cap and
a plum Members Only jackets emerges from the driver's side and drops a
plastic bag tied off at the top. He looks about suspiciously and kicks
the bag under his car. He heads into D&D, passing a large trash
receptacle in the process. A moment later he emerges carrying the
rectangular box used for the purchase of a dozen donuts. He puts the
box in his trunk and drives off. My name is announced to respond to a
question on my conference call. I stumble through the answer sounding
unprepared due to my frustration with the "bag-kicker".
Case Study 4: Enough Is Enough. I pulled into the CVS parking lot and
leaned into the cold wind. The temperature dropped rapidly now that
the December sun had disappeared.  I spied a man in his early thirties
exit the drug store very rapidly. He was tall, maybe 6'4" with red
hair visible under a trucker cap. He was carrying a plastic shopping
bag as he hustled to his SUV parked in one of the closest spaces to
the door. He opened the door, removed what he bought and threw the
plastic bag on the ground. Red got in and turned on the interior
light, turning his attention to something I couldn't see in his lap. I
instantly made a course correction and made for his SUV. I picked up
the plastic bag before the wind whisked it away and knocked on Red's
window. His face registered a bit of surprise but he lowered the
window. Without hesitation I calmly said, "You dropped this." and
handed him the bag. I walked around the front of his truck feeling
both satisfied and confused.
I keep asking myself why people feel compelled to throw their garbage
on the ground. It must be a reflection of how they feel about their
environment. They hate it. Don't respect it. Or they are guilty of the
human ability to abuse something until it is utterly destroyed,
useless or extinct. Is that it? We place ourselves so far above our
environment, use what we please, discard what we will and consequences
be damned. We are guests on this planet. Not supreme beings able to
create new worlds in a week's effort. Will this implied entitlement
and self ascribed superiority over nature be our undoing? I vote yes.