Home » Archives » April 2007 » If She Wants To Shake Your Hand, Be Sure You Wash Later ...
[Previous entry: "How Safe Are You Willing To Be?"] [Next entry: "This Is What Happens When You Don't Have A Plan"]
04/25/2007: "If She Wants To Shake Your Hand, Be Sure You Wash Later ..."
I have a lot of respect for anyone passionate about a position to fight for it, even if I don't personally agree with their views. These days, so many of us just sit on our asses - or blog - and do nothing about the issues that surround us that it is refreshing to see someone fight for what they believe.
That said, there are those issues, and those people, that I just can't take serious. One is the whole global warming / green energy movement. Look, you have to be an idiot or in serious denial to think that we could keep doubling the planet's population and not have an affect on the environment. Just as obvious should be the notion that oil isn't infinite, and the day is going to come when we're gonna need something else to power our cars and iPods.
But until recently, the only visible spokesperson for green energy was eccentric actor Ed Begley Jr, and even the media didn't take him and his home-made energy-saving devices seriously. Now, though, we have Al Gore running around with an Oscar in one hand and pointing a finger at all of us with his other, and people are finally beginning to take note.
One outspoken advocate for change is singer Sheryl Crow. Whether it was inspiration derived from her time with Lance Armstrong or her brush with cancer - or maybe it's just the way she is - she's put herself at the forefront of the green movement. Recently, she did a small tour with Laurie David, one of the producers of "An Inconvenient Truth", where they brought the message of global warming to college students. Buoyed by her success, she's decided to go public with some of her own ideas on how to make the world a better place, one sheet at a time:
One of my favorites is in the area of conserving trees which we heavily rely on for oxygen. I propose a limitation be put on how many sqares of toilet paper can be used in any one sitting. Now, I don't want to rob any law-abiding American of his or her God-given rights, but I think we are an industrious enough people that we can make it work with only one square per restroom visit, except, of course, on those pesky occasions where 2 to 3 could be required.
Right ... isn't this how we did things in the Middle Ages? You'll notice she didn't include an idea on how she'd enforce this particular limit - that would get interesting.
I think her heart is in the right place, even if her brain isn't. On her blog, she goes on to discuss other of her ideas, including special "dining sleeves" that could be used to replace paper napkins and a sort of "Green American Idol" where ... well, you'll just have to read it for yourself.
Personally, I think I'm like most folks in that I'll do my part if you make it sufficiently painless. Give me an alternative fuel car that gets decent performance and doesn't require me to strain used grease for fuel and I'll probably go for it. I might even be willing to pay extra. But for God's sake, stay out of my bathroom!
For what it's worth, it must run in her family. She mentioned the sheet limit to her brother, who thought she could take it even further:
"How bout just washing the one square out."
