Responsibility

    I was walking along a bridge in a nice little town today and when I looked in the creek there were a bunch of Burger King cups and wrappers tossed aside.  A few more steps - a few more cups tossed.  I reached the end of the bridge and not only did I see a few more Burger King trash cups - but a block down, I saw the Burger King.  

This made me wonder.  What if you were always responsible for the things you created - even after they left your control.  How would that make people feel about what they created?  Would they be more inclined to make things which were easier to dispose of - would they supply trash bins to cities?  would everything become bio degradable?  Would the restriction lead to innovation?  

What if car companies were responsible for pollution?  What if electronics companies were responsible for the materials of their circuit boards?

What if bartenders could be held accountable every time someone leaves their bars and dies or kills someone else in a drunk driving accident?  Can you imagine that?  What if every time this happened a gravestone icon was placed on the window of the bar or what if they could be sued by the family for serving the drinks which ended up killing someone in their family.    What if people who sold bullets were held accountable for when they were used illegally?

Of course - none of this will ever happen... all of the liability would be fought tooth and nail by special interest companies who business would be adversely affected.  However - it does lead to another question - what if even without official laws and regulations.... what if people just took a step towards responsibility anyway.