Why can't they just burn the stuff that can't be recycled?

Apparently I’ve been tossing some stuff into my recycle can that can’t be recycled, like straws. So what do they do with these items? Throw them out the window? Why can’t they just burn the stuff into oblivion? (If they can contain the waste and smoke from a nuclear power plant, surely they can contain the waste and smoke from a giant campfire.)

So where does the stuff go? Maybe I’ll take my Dad’s wife on a field trip at the recycling center here in town. :)~