Here is another thought on the cloth bag versus plastic bag issue:
I have gotten so much junk mail in my mailbox on a weekly basis, that I have to keep a folder just for things I need shredded. You probably know what I mean, I'm talking about all of those credit card offers, loan consolidation proposals, mortgage interest rate offers...The list could go on and on. There's really no excuse for all of this. It's an annoyance to me. It's a chore just shredding these things on a weekly to monthly basis. I can't just throw these things away. Someone might be on the lookout to steal my identity, and could easily get a credit card in my name if I didn't shred these things, etc., etc. I often wished I could turn around, call these people, and charge them a shredding fee. Wishful thinking. I know that isn't going to happen. There's no reason for them to be sending me all of this junk when there is a way to handle all of this stuff through a bank, online, on the phone, etc. They are so impersonable, just sending them blindly through the mail as if they're fly-fishing for customers. I'm sure that's what the tactic is. It might actually work for them, but it's a cost to the environment and it's a cost to all of us.
My alternative? I think they should offer free cloth bags that we could all use in the supermarkets, department stores, book stores, libraries...They could advertise this way. When someone actually wants one of their credit cards, they can call the number printed on the bag, or visit the website. This is another way that the bags would get to the consumers, another in-your-face marketing tool. We wouldn't even have to go to the store to get them, they'd come to us!