# Venting about packaging — can be difficult to open!
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [November 9, 2024, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988 "2024-11-09T16:56:44Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 3
### Author:  [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/41 "2024-11-10T14:53:21Z")
> [@BippityBoppityBoo](#):
>
> The TSA requires only that the scissors be 4 inches or less from the pivot point of the blade.
And since scissors are literally two blades loosely attached, here we have proof that the restriction on small blades is just security theater.
Anyway, when i don’t expect to go through airport security, i carry two small knives on my pocket. One has little scissors and the other is very sharp. One or the other serves to open pretty much any packaging except the serious heavy-duty blister packs.
> [@commasense](#):
>
> Now it seems they are sealed with some sort of super laser or ultra-glue or something, and won’t come apart unless you have the strength of Superman.
Yes, chips, cereal, etc. that actually drives me nuts. Yes, i can open them. But why do i have to fish out my knife to do so.
> [@wolfpup](#):
>
> I haven’t noticed that. Just tonight I opened a bag of Lay’s potato chips and it opened easily just as always. It must be some particular brand you’re having trouble with, or maybe a local manufacturing issue.
Nope, it’s ubiquitous. Maybe Canada still uses the old manufacturing process.
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### Author:  [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/42 "2024-11-10T17:03:34Z")
People keep saying this but which candies do Tide pods resemble?
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### Author:  [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/43 "2024-11-10T17:25:30Z")
I’ll answer this. None.
Nada, zilch, zero.
They are shiny squishy and colorful in some cases. Toddlers would see them, poke them, lots would put to their mouths.
Pretty sure that would taste bad and they’d spit and cry.
One in a million might actually swallow a whole one. It _might_ kill a teeny percent of those.
Since all kids are precious to someone, of course we don’t want any of them to suffer and possibly die.
If your toddler shows interest,
Firmly say “No” and,
Put the pods out of their reach. Easy.
This foolishness started because Tiktok had a dare campaign trend. Teens and young adults were eating the damn things. If they got a belly ache, I say they had no home-training and deserve a belly ache.
And now you know why laundry pods cost so much.
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### Author:  [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/44 "2024-11-10T17:27:08Z")
I got a mini crowbar to open my laundry pod container.
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### Author:  [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/45 "2024-11-10T17:31:42Z")
Cool. Send me info so I can get one, plz.
(Please tell me you’re speaking true… pleeeeeeeaaasse)
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### Author:  [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/46 "2024-11-10T17:33:35Z")
Want some real fun? Try getting an Imodium tablet out of it’s wrapping. They have a handy line to tear on, but since it’s laminated in plastic, you can’t. It actually requires a pair of scissors and some very careful cutting to get the bloody tablet out of the packaging. Why the company feels it necessary to package diarrhea medication like this is beyond my ken. It’s like a cruel joke is being played. FUCKERS!
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### Author:  [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/47 "2024-11-10T17:35:17Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#):
>
> People keep saying this but which candies do Tide pods resemble? -
Toddlers don’t know all the different candies, they just know that it looks like the right size and colors that candies are, all in one little package.
> [@Beckdawrek](#):
>
> If your toddler shows interest,
> Firmly say “No” and,
> Put the pods out of their reach. Easy.
Lol! Toddlers get into them when the parent is in another room. The toddler may not have ever expressed an interest in them before. And they climb.
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### Author:  [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/48 "2024-11-10T17:44:15Z")
I call hijack on these posts.
We’ve done this before. I’ll not participate any more.
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### Author:  [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/49 "2024-11-10T17:55:27Z")
> [@Spoons](#):
>
> But seriously. _Child-proofing_ a tub of _cole slaw_?
More like tamper-proofing, to defeat the psychos (think Tylenol) or the idiots such as the ones I’ve heard of who were opening ice cream, licking it, then reclosing it and putting it back for some unsuspecting person to buy.
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### Author:  [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/50 "2024-11-10T17:58:27Z")
Speaking of ice cream. Blue bunny oval packaging has a horrible lid design. If you screw up that pull strip, well…you’ll have to make other plans.
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### Author:  [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/51 "2024-11-10T18:14:15Z")
For a totally different product: it’s a pain to get that first roll of toilet paper out of the package, especially the mega rolls that are compressed before packaging. I use small finger nail scissors to cut a slit on the top and front of the plastic, essentially making a clamshell opening.
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### Author:  [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/52 "2024-11-10T18:23:07Z")
Some pill bottles have reversible lids. They’re child-proof in one orientation, but if you flip them over they are regular, non-child-proof screw-on lids.
I’ve seen this only for prescription meds. Over-the-counter meds don’t have these types of lids. Fortunately, it’s usually possible to orient the lid when putting it back on to defeat the child-proof feature.
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### Author:  [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/53 "2024-11-10T18:36:01Z")
> **[SHALL 4-Piece Flat Pry Bar Set -15" 10" 7.5" 5.5"- Heavy Duty & Mini Nail...](https://www.amazon.com/SHALL-4-Piece-High-Carbon-Remolding-Woodworking/dp/B0CGLM4YPV)**
>
> SHALL 4-Piece Flat Pry Bar Set -15" 10" 7.5" 5.5"- Heavy Duty & Mini Nail Puller Crowbar, Utility Claw Bar, Wonder Bar, High-Carbon Steel Flat Bar Tool for Home Remolding & Woodworking - Amazon.com
My set is from Stanley and I got it at Ace but it’s pretty much the same
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### Author:  [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/54 "2024-11-10T18:44:14Z")
Cool. I’m getting those. My son may have them in his tool box. I’m gonna swipe the small one if I find it.
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### Author:  [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/55 "2024-11-10T18:45:36Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#):
>
> Usually when there’s a zipped closure on packaging you can either tear or cut it above the zipper.
Oh, the place where I tear it open to get to the zipper worked fine. But the zipper mechanism had some sort of lock on it which required you to pinch and push down on it simultaneously (or something like that) so you could unzip it. I considered trying to find someone with a five-year-old child to open it for me.
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### Author:  [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/56 "2024-11-10T18:47:31Z")
Where’s the damn like button? This has been driving me crazy for years.
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### Author:  [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/57 "2024-11-10T18:51:34Z")
> [@Jeff\_Lichtman](#):
>
> Some pill bottles have reversible lids. They’re child-proof in one orientation, but if you flip them over they are regular, non-child-proof screw-on lids.
>
> I’ve seen this only for prescription meds. Over-the-counter meds don’t have these types of lids. Fortunately, it’s usually possible to orient the lid when putting it back on to defeat the child-proof feature.
Once when I was picking up a prescription at Walgreens I assisted an elderly woman who looked at the childproof lid on her medicine and complained that she can never open them. I opened it for her, then flipped the lid and reclosed it so it was now a simple screw-on lid.
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### Author:  [@Dogginit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogginit)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/58 "2024-11-10T19:06:05Z")
> [@JohnGalt](#):
>
> I use small finger nail scissors to cut a slit on the top and front of the plastic, essentially making a clamshell opening.
I just leave it on the dining room table for my cat to open for me - he’s hell on anything in plastic packaging.
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### Author:  [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)
#### Post date: [November 10, 2024, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/59 "2024-11-10T22:00:18Z")
> [@Dogginit](#):
>
> I just leave it on the dining room table for my cat to open for me - he’s hell on anything in plastic packaging
How many times does he push it off the table onto the floor before it opens?
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### Author:  [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)
#### Post date: [November 12, 2024, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/venting-about-packaging-can-be-difficult-to-open/1009988/60 "2024-11-12T17:03:52Z")
> [@Bullitt](#):
>
> I need to vent a little about Ziplock-like shipping bags. This is not pit worthy. Can I vent a little?
Are you really wanting to reuse the zip close bag? Just cut the whole damn thing open.
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