Mine stopped using straws for a bit and gave a special lid that made it easier to sip your soda. That didn't last long, we are now back to plastic cups and plastic straws.

And they still eat floating plastic that they mistake for jellyfish.

No the straw thing was about a cute kid making a science fair project about "The Dangers of Straws!" With all the thought an elementary school student could offer to the conversation that was latched onto by the media to fill a time slot and get more media buzz.

Not defending paper straws specifically but recycling is a scam. Anything common household material that is not plastic is inherently better than plastic from an environmental standpoint.

They're compostable/biodegradable. I think the point was to reduce the affect of litter. Some municipalities give you an organic bin that's collected, composted, then sold.