General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: While watching Nova on HS football, IMO it's time to scrap football or change it to a non contact [View all]thucythucy
(7,948 posts)Part of that OP, and the discussion which followed, was about the air pollution, carbon footprint, fertilizer run-off, and the incredible waste of water inherent in our obsession with the perfectly manicured lawn, as well as the noise and general obnoxiousness of living in a society where any sunny day is seen by many as an excuse for cranking up a two-stroke engine.
If you bother to read the thread, you might learn something about the environmental impact of "lawn maintenance." I know I did. I had no idea, for instance, that fully one third of all the water used in Texas was used to water people's lawns. Years from now, when the aquifers run dry and the glaciers are gone, people are going to be amazed at the short-sighted narcissism of this current generation of Americans. Or are you one of those folks who thinks global warming is a liberal hoax, and that natural resources, such as water and petroleum, are infinite?
We live in a society. We are all interconnected. "Live and let live" only works if there is at least a modicum of consideration for others, and if your "living" doesn't destroy the environment we all have to share. Or, in the case of serious and entirely avoidable sports injuries, if it doesn't raise the cost of health care insurance for all of us.
And BTW, I don't recall mentioning anything in my OP about banning anything, or "slapping controls" on it or "stopping it altogether." That's your own mis-characterization. I simply asked why Americans have such an obsession with their lawns. I thought the response from my fellow-DUers was thought provoking, informative, and at times pretty damn funny. Given that it now has close to 40 recs, and more than a 120 responses, most of them positive, I don't think I did DU any great disservice by starting this conversation.
I certainly don't appreciate one OP being turned into a straw man so you can discount serious issues being raised in another.