what is with these ignorant racists?
(republican) Mayor who sent watermelon e-mail says he’ll resign
he claims that he didn’t see the blatant racism in the email. so what was it that he found to be so funny that he’d have to forward it to others?
instead of these cloths, “greenies” should use a butt-wipe like mayor grose.
i can’t see the purpose of eliminating toilet paper for cloths except to save some trees? probably not worth it in the grand scheme (illegal logging for construction purposes far outweighs this problem). using cloth diapers to keep disposables out of landfills is worthwhile, however.

I once said to a student, “That’s like the pot calling the kettle black.” I was accused of being a racist because I used the word “black” – what? Did I think that being black is a bad thing? Is that a racist thing? My answer…no, it’s a cast iron thing.
I have since started saying, “That like the ocean calling the river wet.”

No, but we are considering switching to toilet paper that’s made from recycled materials. It’s not as soft, but apparently the soft stuff Americans prefer comes from mostly live trees.

Much of the world considers toilet paper unbelievably unsanitary. There are toilets that first spray the appropriate parts with warm water and then blow dry them. The major problem I had with them was figuring out what the heck to do with the remote control, inasmuch as it was labeled in Japanese.

Yeah…toilet paper doesn’t grow on trees, you know… ;-P
It would be a good question…which takes up more energy – making toilet paper out of renewable resources or using other resources to recycle?

Those of us with kids still in diapers have already debated this question … when crunchy moms went back to cloth (and a diaper service, not so crunchy, then).
I’m prepared to admit that progress isn’t always a move forward.

I need something to poop on.

Can somebody please give this dog something to poop on – and an ashtray? He get off my leg dog!

I have noticed that the reusable menstrual cup and rag market still doesn’t seem to be as big as the greenie movement would indicate, that is, with as many hippie/granola chicks as there are, you would think that there would be a lot more of the cups sold, although I suppose you only have to buy the cup once.
So gross.
Where is the “progress” in “progressive?”
Signed,
You’ll take my toilet paper/minipads out of my cold, dead hands (I speak from experience — I was a Peace Corps volunteer in South America and I have used outhouses and newspaper. Never again.)

on the cups…they’re not that bad…

Save Trees? Save money and the Earth and be clean at the same time! Get serious and add Bathroom Bidet Sprayers to all your bathrooms. I think Dr. Oz on Oprah said it best: “if you had pee or poop on your hand, you wouldn’t wipe it off with paper, would you? You’d wash it off” Available at http://www.bathroomsprayers.com with these you won’t even need toilet paper any more, just a towel to dry off! Don’t worry, you can still leave some out for guests and can even make it the soft stuff without felling guilty. It’s cheap and can be installed without a plumber; and runs off the same water line to your toilet. You’ll probably pay for it in a few months of toilet paper savings. And after using one of these you won’t know how you lasted all those years with wadded up handfuls of toilet paper. Now we’re talking green and helping the environment without any pain.

we don’t use paper plates and disposable utensils and cups on a regular basis. we wash them and reuse them. so, i’m wondering, are some of you anti-conservationists claiming that it would more environmentally friendly to use paper plates and cups for every meal rather than wash something reusable?

Disagreeing with someone is much different than calling them a fool or the many other things you have said to people on this blog.
Who (specifically) are you referring to as “anti-conservatives”? Or “are you sure you want to paint with that broad of a brush”? (Julie, see how easy it is to do that without resorting to accusations of slander?)
Or are you thinking that if you use toilet paper you’re “anti-conservative” – if so, what do you use?

read my comment more closely. i say nothing of “anti-conservatives”. i am addressing those few here who seem to be against conserving (in this case toilet paper). how else should i refer to them than as “anti-conservationists“?
1. i don’t lump conservatives and conservationists together (that’s one generalization that i would NEVER make).
2. addressing “some of you anti-conservationists” is not broad-brushing.
3. you didn’t address the issue.
i’m trying to discuss the potential merit of the cloth wipes without bringing left/right politics into it. can you handle that?
consider the resources that go into acquiring materials for, and the manufacturing of, the shipping, and the delivery of producing a roll of thin paper that just gets flushed. compare that to the same processes for something that’s reusable.
i’m comparing that to the same case when it comes to dinner-ware and utensils. there’s also the case of cloth vs. disposable diapers.

I’m not an anti-conservationist (sorry for the earlier mistype). Why should I address it.
What do you use? (for the record, I use TP, but reusable hygiene products.)

then don’t respond, it apparently wasn’t addressed to you.
i (and my family) use paper. but, this is the first that i’ve heard of a reusable wipe and honestly hadn’t thought of it before. however, we conserve in many other ways and have been for more than a decade and we continue to look for new alternatives.

So, you are one of the “anti-conservationists” that you refer to? (in this case toilet paper)

baiting for an argument?
“are you thinking that if you use toilet paper you’re ‘anti-conservative’”
no.
the anti-conservationists that i refer to are those here who ridicule proper tire inflation and clean air filters as a means to conserve gas, of driving in a responsible manner that conserves gas, of turning the house thermostat down at night and turning lights off when you leave the room and unplugging appliances that aren’t in use and buying a $1 compact florescent bulb to replace a burned out incandescent one; those who scoff at conservation as a realistic method to employ in order to reduce our dependency on carbon fuels, overconsumption and overflowing landfills; those who rip on jimmy carter for pushing responsible conservation decades ago; those who ridicule conservation because it’s an inconvenience or added cost to them; those who use terms like “greenies,” “hippies” and “granolas” as derogatory names.
yeah, i think there are a few of those anti-conservationists lurking here (michele included).

baiting for an argument?
No, I just find it amusing that you use the phrase “in this case toilet paper”, when you, in fact, use toilet paper.

oh brother. that’s petty. i’m sure that most people knew what i meant. and i also said that “this is the first that i’ve heard of a reusable wipe and honestly hadn’t thought of it before.” i think the product may have merit, and that’s what i want to discuss with those who are generally against conservation. isn’t that the topic of the post?
with “anti” meaning “against” and “conservation” being the movement for ethical use of the world’s resources (and the protection of those resources), i guess i thought that most adults could figure that out.
now that i’ve (hopefully) clarified who/what i mean by “anti-conservationist” do you still have anything to say, or did you have some other point that you were trying to make by taking the conversation in that direction? like trying to point out some amusing hypocrisy on my part, perhaps? rather than beating around the bush, i’ll give you what you want: i’m not a purist when it comes to conservation (nor have i ever claimed to be), but i do everything within my abilities and always look for other things that would make a difference. i’m not perfect. but, i believe in the cause and i support the movement. i’m not so quick to dismiss ideas like this just because they may be counter-culture.
so, are you a pro-conservationist or an anti-conservationist? sure, you use washable feminine hygiene products, but do you think that the conservationist movement is a waste of time? do you ridicule president carter trying to encourage simple conservation steps in a time of resource shortages, or keeping your tires inflated properly to save on gas when prices are upwards of $4 per gallon, or investing in wind and solar power, or using florescent bulbs? do you attack the critics of an over-populated planet? since you self-labelled as not anti-conservationist, we can assume that you’re a supporter of these initiatives, or maybe you want to change your mind, having a clearer understanding.

I am selectively pro-politically-conservationist.
I grow much of my own food. I keep my home temperature down. I ride my bike in the summer.
I have very few compact fluorescent bulbs…it’s a tossup – less electricity vs. more mercury in the landfills – or home atmosphere is they’re broken.
I take my own mug to the local coffee shop and I use all-natural dyes on my hand-spun wool yarn. Personally, I’m partial to picking goldenrod in a local field and dying wool with it. Organic teabags give natural fiber a nice ecru shade.
I’d rather make an informed choice about such things as bulbs, yada yada, than follow the leader into an uninformed action.
I’ve seen windfarms – nuclear is more sensible. If you’re near a water source, that’s a good source. Solar (realistically) is a long, long way off.
If solar was financially responsible, I’d put a panel on top of my camper.
oh brother. that’s petty.
Sorry…you liberals are wearing off on me. Or maybe just wearing on me.

By the way…the fiber I am currently spinning is grown locally and was sheared from an alpaca named “Juan”.

“less electricity vs. more mercury in the landfills”
recycle them. ace hardware takes them for free.
have you tried dying with onion skins?
take this as sincerely it is meant: i’m proud of what you do for the environment. but you still didn’t answer:
do you think that the conservationist movement is a waste of time?
do you ridicule president carter trying to encourage simple conservation steps in a time of resource shortages?
did you ridicule obama (and triple-a) when they suggest that keeping your tires inflated properly to save on gas when prices are upwards of $4 per gallon?
do you attack the critics of an over-populated planet?
your information on solar power is outdated. there are 2 popular uses of solar power – photovoltaic and passive solar for heating – and both can pay off after only a couple of years to a decade depending on the size, location, and the cost of energy. the camper that my dad bought 6 years ago came with a solar panel on top, because it is financially responsible.
true, in decades to come, if given funding, huge advances will be made in solar and prices will likely come down, but saying that solar is a long way off is just misinformed.
i would rather have a wind-farm meltdown in my back yard than a nuclear one. sure, they might be more stable than chernobyl, but the potential risk is always there. and then there’s the radioactive waste to deal with. i guess if you promise to put it in your basement then i might go along with that.

do you think that the conservationist movement is a waste of time?
Some of it is, some of it isn’t. I see no reason to embrace the whole package without weeding out the waste.
i would rather have a wind-farm meltdown in my back yard than a nuclear one.
I have a nuclear plant not very many miles from where I live.
My sister has a few windmills…they gave her migraines.
did you ridicule obama (and triple-a) when they suggest that keeping your tires inflated properly to save on gas when prices are upwards of $4 per gallon?
I think it’s a drop in the bucket. A very small drop.
Does this save me money? Yes. Does it “save the planet”? When you consider that as I’m putting air in my tires I see several jets overhead. Who is using more energy?

you didn’t answer directly, but i suppose this little do-ci-do is the best that i can get from you. thanks for trying.
the average person in this country could gain a 20% improvement in mileage by keeping their tires properly inflated. most oil used in the world market is by us. and we use it primarily to fuel our cars.
“Does it ‘save the planet’? When you consider that as I’m putting air in my tires I see several jets overhead. Who is using more energy?”
ah, yes, the “they’re not doing it so why should i bother” argument. that’s a classic. here’s a tip: jets carry more than just you and the kiddos to the market. they use more fuel and they likely always will. they use more fuel than me leaving all the lights on in my house with the thermostat cranked up to 120F. that doesn’t mean that it makes sense for me to do that.

I think, it’s even better to just use a toilet bidet. Been actually using one at home for such a long time already. Got mine from http://products.mercola.com/toilet-bidet/ You may wanna try.