Almaden Resident

Columns

Do they really want us to open their packages?

By Bob Kieve

Why is it so difficult to open things?

I mean, I was trying to open a package of Rolaids the other day. Trying to get under a glued flap at one end of the small package, I quickly broke a fingernail.

So I decided that I must be at fault, that there must be a much easier way--a way that would not endanger a fingernail, a way that would not test the diminished strength in fingers that have been weakened by arthritis, a way that the manufacturer of the Rolaids had perhaps developed in order to make it easier for the public to reach and to consume the company's product.

But, no. Despite my search along all four sides of the package of Rolaids, I found nothing--no shortcut to getting at the product and no printed instructions telling me how the package might be opened.

I bring up the Rolaids example because it's duplicated by any number of products whose packaging seems designed to keep the public away. I understand the safety concerns about packages that can be too easily opened and contaminated, but shouldn't the legitimate purchaser be able, without too much trouble, to access the product that was bought? I sure think so.

Bob Kieve's opinions can be heard on radio stations KLIV and KRTY.