Okay, pet peeve time.

Is it everywhere, or just around here, that every restaurant assumes you need a straw with every beverage? When did our entire society become eight years old? Not only every beverage ordered, but a new one with each refill.

And even if I wanted one, did something happen to render the one I got with my previous drink unusable?

How many people just regularly throw them away? It just seems like a huge waste. Is there some straw lobbying organization that effected this change in our dining habits?