Clamshell Ashtrays
The idea of banning smoking on the beach is a positive step in many respects: no more butts stubbed out in the sand, no more wafting clouds of smoke spoiling the lovely sea breezes. Sure, when I smoked, I did so on the beach just as much as anywhere else, although at a certain point I was adult enough to pick up after myself. But even when I was a kid, the beaches were cluttered with the stub ends of filtered cigarettes, and these make up a noticeable portion of the plastic waste washed up along shorelines worldwide. I heartily approve Manly Council’s action, and wonder if Clover Moore will do the same for the Harbour beaches, or if the Councils for the Eastern suburbs will follow suit?

Update: The ban has been passed. What makes this possible is that Australian society remains by-and-large tremendously polite, so its citizens tend to be law-abiding almost to a fault. For example, Walk-Don't Walk signs are actually obeyed, regardless of traffic conditions. So if NYC's Mayor Bloomberg can achieve an 11% drop in the number of smokers by his total indoor ban, perhaps Manly will, in this culture, achieve its goals, too.