Is Plastic the Problem?

"Is plastic the problem or is it the waste in general?" it's a question I put to myself a lot of times (Actually, this premise brings a lot of other questions, but let's leave that aside for now). When I was a kid, every time I would go to my grandparent's they would always have washed plastic bags drying outside. One day, I asked my grandfather why washing old plastic bags if we could get new ones for free. His answer was something like "I have two, and two are enough. Why get more?" My point is there's a lot of articles written about this hot topic and how plastics are evil. When I read them, I feel like most of them miss the real problem: waste. Single-use plastic bags are not worst than single-use paper, cotton, or even iron bags, meaning all of them create new and very bad consequences if not used responsibly. Thoughts?