If you thought Jeremy Irons was scary as the voice of Scar in the Lion King (come on, the scene with the wildebeest ...), you should hear him narrate "The Majestic Plastic Bag," a four-minute short on YouTube. Actually, the mockumentary about the journey of a plastic bag from “the open plains of the asphalt jungle” to the “garbage patch in the heart of the Pacific Ocean” isn’t scary so much as alarming. That garbage patch, for example, is now twice the size of Texas.
 
The video is in support of a California bill (AB 1998) that would ban single-use plastic bags at supermarkets, convenience stores and large retail outlets. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger says he will support the measure, which the California state Senate is expected to take up this month.
 
In “Paper or plastic? How about a tote?” we tested reusable shopping bags sold by eight national chains and regional stores to see which performed best in terms of size, strength, leaking and washing. The one-dollar bags from Whole Foods, which has store locations all over California, held the most and can be exchanged if they rip. Maybe that'll make Jeremy Irons smile.

—Daniel DiClerico