Gift cards don't go to heaven

I was gifted a $200 gift card from Circuit City when I graduated from undergrad in 2001. What once seemed like a despairing recession no longer seems so bad by today's standards. At the time, I couldn't eat the gift card and I couldn't use it to pay off my PG&E energy bill--that reached an obscene four digit figure because of Enron.
One way or another, it's 2009 and I still have money on the gift card. Circuit City's liquidation sale is far from impressive nor cheap--at least not now. I used my money to buy a printer/scanner/copier and a stock of ink cartridges. This turned out to be a very thoughtful gift and purchase that will enhance my school and professional work. Gift cards are a great gift idea: it's discreet, as opposed to being tacky and giving cash; obligates the giftee to spend at a store; easy to ship and transport; and it's easy to wrap a gift card.
Unlike my Circuit City gift card that had a shelf life of 8 years, gift cards are made of plastic and aren't re-used or recycled. Much like water bottles and plastic bags, gift cards are starting to be scrutinized by treehuggers everywhere. It is more environmentally responsible than buying and wrapping a gag gift, but gift cards create an extraneous step in the gifting process that ends with another piece of unbiodegradable waste per gift. With more scrutiny, perhaps for Christmas 2009 a brand will have a potato-based gift card. That would be impressive.