[Teheran-ro] Reflections on the Hoarding of Trash Bags

The Netflix series "The 8 Show" lays bare human nature when resources are scarce. Eight contestants live on different floors, and the most vital items—water and boxed meals—start on the eighth floor and are passed down one level at a time. If someone on an upper floor gets greedy and monopolizes these supplies, the people below face hunger and a direct threat to their survival. It is a ruthless structure in which the "choices" of those upstairs become a matter of "survival" for those downstairs.
The recent "trash bag panic" that has swept through our society looks strikingly similar to this fictional setup. The turmoil began when the supply of naphtha, the basic feedstock for Polyethylene (PE), the main raw material for volume-based trash bags, was disrupted by the Middle East wars. Unlike crude oil, naphtha is heavily dependent on short-term procurement, so even a disruption of a month or two can immediately lead to production setbacks. This structural vulnerability, which makes the market hypersensitive, effectively became the fuse for the current crisis.
The government has maintained that average inventories nationwide are sufficient for more than three months and that recycled materials are also plentiful. But these assurances have not calmed the fear on the ground. Citizens, gripped by the anxiety that "if I don’t buy now, I really won’t be able to get any," have engaged in collective hoarding. As a result, large supermarkets and convenience stores have posted "purchase limits per person," and in some places, a bizarre form of market distortion has emerged in which customers can only get trash bags if they buy other products as part of a forced bundle.
At this point, it is impossible to ignore the government’s complacent response. The figure for average inventory may serve as statistical evidence of stability, but it does nothing to erase the sense of shortage felt by someone who makes a wasted trip to the convenience store around the corner. In times of crisis, the government should go beyond simply announcing total supply and instead closely examine regional disparities in distribution and bottlenecks in the supply chain. The repeated assurances that "everything is fine," offered without managing consumer sentiment, have only deepened distrust on the ground.
At the same time, we also need to reflect on our own every-person-for-themselves behavior. Panic buying is never a real solution. What it truly amplifies is not the physical shortage of goods, but the sheer size of our collective anxiety. The hundreds of trash bags I stack in my storage room today are, in effect, opportunities taken away from neighbors who need to throw out their garbage right now. In essence, this is no different from the upstairs residents in "The 8 Show" hoarding resources while turning a blind eye to the hunger of those below. We cannot control external variables like the Middle East wars, but preventing them from snowballing into everyday disasters is our responsibility.
aber@fnnews.com Reporter