&gt; I subscribe to the idea of buying bottled water<p>Quoting from <a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.nrdc.org&#x2F;water&#x2F;drinking&#x2F;qbw.asp" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.nrdc.org&#x2F;water&#x2F;drinking&#x2F;qbw.asp</a> :<p>&gt; 1. Isn&#x27;t bottled water safer than tap water?<p>&gt; No, not necessarily. NRDC conducted a four-year review of the bottled water industry and the safety standards that govern it, including a comparison of national bottled water rules with national tap water rules, and independent testing of over 1,000 bottles of water. Our conclusion is that there is no assurance that just because water comes out of a bottle it is any cleaner or safer than water from the tap. And in fact, an estimated 25 percent or more of bottled water is really just tap water in a bottle -- sometimes further treated, sometimes not.<p>&gt; 2. Is bottled water actually unsafe?<p>&gt; Most bottled water appears to be safe. Of the bottles we tested, the majority proved to be high quality and relatively free of contaminants. The quality of some brands was spotty, however, and such products may pose a health risk, primarily for people with weakened immune systems (such as the frail elderly, some infants, transplant and cancer patients, or people with HIV&#x2F;AIDS). About 22 percent of the brands we tested contained, in at least one sample, chemical contaminants at levels above strict state health limits. If consumed over a long period of time, some of these contaminants could cause cancer or other health problems.<p>Don&#x27;t forget also that there&#x27;s a <i>lot</i> of plastic waste with bottled water, and the cost is enormous. The pure tap water I drink is cheap enough that I also use it to bathe in and water my plants. Even purified tap water isn&#x27;t that cheap.<p>This price difference means there is a strong business interest to privatize water. (See also <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;Water_privatization" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;Water_privatization</a> ). One of these companies is Nestlé Waters. Nestlé, like other private water companies, are bringing in loads of bottled water to Flint. This has the dual purpose of humanitarian support, and getting the idea across that bottled water is a solution over untrustworthy city water.<p>What an amazing coincidence that Deborah Muchmore, the wife of Gov. Rick Snyder’s ex-Chief of Staff Dennis Muchmore, was also spokesperson for Nestle Waters in Michigan. I think this alignment of interests is a natural consequence of believing that a (democratic) government should be run more like a(n autoritarian) business.