The Year Without TP: gone too far?

[Mrs L]

This (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/22/garden/22impact.html?ex=1332302400&en=84ccfaf562672800&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink)has got to be one of the more bizarre things I've read this week. And for a chronic insomniac with too much time on her hands late at night, that's saying a lot.

I found myself especially horrified by the shopping spree undertaken just before they embarked on this new lifestyle. Two weeks salary, for a manhatten-ite, on shoes??? And how does this fit into the entire no-impact, low-cost, environmentally friendly picture?

I say not only should the cleaning lady get to keep the products she wants to use, she should get a new family to clean for. If this family wants to live like this, why not take it all the way and clean their own home?

[The Central Scrutinizer]

I would call them retards, but that would be an insult to retarded people.

[rikzilla]

Oh that!!

Gee, I thought it was to be a year without Tom Petty!
http://i.realone.com/assets/rn/cms/2004/large/Tom_Petty_-_gallery_image_-_lg.6479018.jpg

Thank the blessed FSM it's only toilet paper! Oh the horror of a year sans Tom! :eek:

-z

[Mrs L]

If it was a year sans Tom I'd have to post naked pics of Marc L. not that I have any, er, hmm, .../slink away quietly.

[LawnOven]

I would call them retards, but that would be an insult to retarded people.

I dunno seems like a pretty fantastic publicity stunt to me, esp. for someone with something to sell.

btw; was this story printed on paper?

In that case, they are personally responsible for the consumption of quite a bit of paper.

[rikzilla]

:D

[Marc L]

If it was a year sans Tom I'd have to post naked pics of Marc L. not that I have any, er, hmm, .../slink away quietly.

Of course you don't. The only way you'd get naked pictures of me would be to get me drunk first, and then nake....hey! So that's what last night was about! Here I thought the bright flashes were....um...nevermind

Marc

[PrincessIneffabelle]

Yikes! How does the lady in the story keep herself cleaned up during her "visit from Aunt Flo"?

[sophia8]

If this family wants to live like this, why not take it all the way and clean their own home?
Quite. What's stopping them? Except the fact that people like them just don't clean up their own mess. BTW, what on earth do they do with all that compost?
People like this just make me puke. They go without a coffee maker, a microwave, a food processor - good heavens, how on earth do these poor people manage?
They have lots of money, a nice well-furnished home, lots of clothes - they don't need to buy much new stuff. They're young and healthy, they eat well, they can afford health insurance - it's no problem to them to ride bicycles or walk everywhere, especially as they live within a couple of miles of everything they need.

As I said, stories like this make me puke. Millions of people live a "low-impact" life. They're the people who live on the breadline, without the money to run cars or use lots of electricity or waste lots of food or buy stuff they don't need. But who the heck applauds them, writes about them, films them, invites them to write a book?

As for going without toilet paper - what's wrong with using newspaper? It's recycling and it uses far less water than using your hands.

[sophia8]

Yikes! How does the lady in the story keep herself cleaned up during her "visit from Aunt Flo"?
She probably uses Mooncups (http://www.mooncup.co.uk/) or something similar.
Or maybe she uses nothing and leaves the mess for the cleaning lady to deal with. /sarcasm

[LawnOven]

Oh come on now, you're ruining the feel-good urban hippy story of the week with your third world realities.

Show some more consideration; I mean like we all have to share this planet man.

[WildCat]

Someone should tell these idiots that a dishwasher uses less water than washing by hand does.

[Thanz]

Someone should tell these idiots that a dishwasher uses less water than washing by hand does.
But I would imagine that it uses far more electricity, which is the point if you are trying to reduce your carbon footprint.

Not that I think this is the true motivation for these idiots, with a book deal and a freakin' camera crew following them around.

[LawnOven]

But I would imagine that it uses far more electricity, which is the point if you are trying to reduce your carbon footprint.

Not that I think this is the true motivation for these idiots, with a book deal and a freakin' camera crew following them around.

maybe, maybe not.

The Bonn study proves that the dishwasher uses only half the energy and one-sixth of the water, less soap too. Even the most sparing and careful washers could not beat the modern dishwasher.

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2005/08/dishwasher_vs_h.php


edit: read the comments, the one's with hippies rejecting facts, responding with "that couldn't possibly be true", and "well they didn't test me" "it was sponsered by the man!" are kind of hilarious.

[LawnOven]

And then there's this

Unless the dishes are greasy (rare given my vegetarian meals) I only use water...

ewww, damn dirty hippies.

Aperently she's unaware of germ theory or something.

[boooeee]

I'm assuming this will be distributed only as an e-book?

Extreme solutions like this are not the way to tackle global warming. In some cases, they may be counter-productive. For example, this whole notion of only buying "locally grown foods". First, food companies don't like paying a lot in shipping costs, so I'm sure they do their best to pack the food they ship as efficiently as possible. Secondly, there are fewer options for buying locally grown food, so if you end up driving further to a farmer's market, you're defeating the whole purpose. Finally, buying only locally grown food could also be called the "Screw Developing Countries" approach. It seems like old fashioned protectionism in new clothes.

Not all carbon reduction efforts have the same cost. Let's focus on the ones that don't choke off global trade to poor countires.

[Mrs L]

or she uses a wet cloth.

Screw the newspaper option, just use a wet rag for all your wiping needs. Boil them every day or every other day. Like they should be doing for the cloth diapers instead of using the washing machine. Provides heat *and* is productive.

[billydkid]

Quite. What's stopping them? Except the fact that people like them just don't clean up their own mess. BTW, what on earth do they do with all that compost?
People like this just make me puke. They go without a coffee maker, a microwave, a food processor - good heavens, how on earth do these poor people manage?
They have lots of money, a nice well-furnished home, lots of clothes - they don't need to buy much new stuff. They're young and healthy, they eat well, they can afford health insurance - it's no problem to them to ride bicycles or walk everywhere, especially as they live within a couple of miles of everything they need.

As I said, stories like this make me puke. Millions of people live a "low-impact" life. They're the people who live on the breadline, without the money to run cars or use lots of electricity or waste lots of food or buy stuff they don't need. But who the heck applauds them, writes about them, films them, invites them to write a book?

As for going without toilet paper - what's wrong with using newspaper? It's recycling and it uses far less water than using your hands.I'm with you. They make me puke too. I'm feeling more and more like George Carlin everyday. I just hope I"m not quite as gross.