Are you as sick of litterbugs as I am?

[ThriftyD]

Hell, have you guys seen the pics of the river banks in Rio de Janeiro in advance of next year's Olympics?  The US, sadly, looks like a pristine utopia in comparison.

Another thing that angers me is when people throw plastic bottles or recyclable cans in the trash can when there's a recycle can/bin RIGHT NEXT TO THE TRASH!  At my former apartment complex, every time I went to the dumpster corral, I'd spend time picking out the plastic bottles, cans, and other recyclables from the garbage dumpster and putting them in the recycling dumpster.  Just inconsiderate and lazy.
   

[Cougar]

 I routinely pickup after others in the parking garage. in the building, if I see something in the hall; i'll pass it once to see if anyone else will pick it up and pick it up later if no one did. I think I can count one one hand the number of times I didn't have to pick it up later.

 but this doesn't bother me because I believe most people are extremely lazy and generally have no thoughts except of their own immediate wants and needs.

[Cpa Cat]

Hell, have you guys seen the pics of the river banks in Rio de Janeiro in advance of next year's Olympics?  The US, sadly, looks like a pristine utopia in comparison.

Another thing that angers me is when people throw plastic bottles or recyclable cans in the trash can when there's a recycle can/bin RIGHT NEXT TO THE TRASH!  At my former apartment complex, every time I went to the dumpster corral, I'd spend time picking out the plastic bottles, cans, and other recyclables from the garbage dumpster and putting them in the recycling dumpster.  Just inconsiderate and lazy.
   

This drives me nuts. We have city-wide recycling, so I have a can for recyclables and one for trash in my kitchen. I routinely have guests (local - so they have recycling service too!) put their recyclables in the trash can that is clearly the garbage instead of the recycle bin that is RIGHT NEXT TO IT.

Sometimes I feel like taking their plastic bottles out and and hitting them with it. But I'm too polite. I just pluck them out and put them in the correct bin. You'd think they'd notice that someone is sorting their garbage, but they don't.

Plus - my husband says I'm lucky those people try to put their garbage in some kind of receptacle. After his friends leave, we often find KFC bags with chicken bones laying around in the basement - so gross. We're vegetarians and we have cats. What kind of pigs leave chicken bones laying around??

[Daisy]

What about other forms of environmental litter...like a co-worker of mine who leaves his TV on in the hotel room all day when he goes into the office on business travel. I was staying in the room across from him and, as we left for the day to go to work, I noticed he was locking up his room and the TV was still on. So, of course, I (innocently) mentioned to him that he forgot to turn off his TV. Nope, he did it on purpose because he didn't want the maid to think no one was in the room and he doesn't like anyone cleaning up his room during his stay.

[vern]

[FrugalShrew]

I am sick of all the litterbugs, too. I just don't get how people can care so little. Litter is gross. I've used a plastic bag to pick up litter while walking as well.

[GuitarStv]

I hate litter, but for some reason when cyclists litter it bothers me even more.  I've stopped my long Saturday ride in order to pick up blown tubes on the side of the road, and I HATE stopping that ride.

[Slee_stack]

The other day I noticed some litter that blew out of the back of a construction crew pick-up truck.  There are probably a number of cases where people aren't intentionally littering, but doing so via carelessness.

Intentional littering should be a caning offense.

[NumberJohnny5]

Another topic where everyone does something that's wrong, yet somehow nobody is guilty of it?

I littered. Threw an ice cream cone out of the car on a deserted road. I could have left it in the car until I got home hours later. Sorry.

Oh, and I have poured drinks out of fast food cups. More out of forgetfulness than laziness (after a few days, the cups start leaking, so it's either empty the cup before then, or risk it leaking everywhere).

My dad used to throw aluminum cans out the window on a particular road (only cans, only on that road). He knew a guy who would pick up cans on the side of the road and get money for them at the recycling center. A way of helping someone without making them feel like a charity case.

I've been to places a lot worse than the US in terms of litter. Dominican Republic comes to mind.

[Retired To Win]

Another topic where everyone does something that's wrong, yet somehow nobody is guilty of it?

I littered. Threw an ice cream cone out of the car on a deserted road. [RTW: which was food and therefore biodegradable.  That's not littering.] I could have left it in the car until I got home hours later. Sorry.

Oh, and I have poured drinks out of fast food cups.[RTW: Big deal!  The soda itself is not the problem.] More out of forgetfulness than laziness (after a few days, the cups start leaking, so it's either empty the cup before then, or risk it leaking everywhere).

My dad used to throw aluminum cans out the window on a particular road (only cans, only on that road). He knew a guy who would pick up cans on the side of the road and get money for them at the recycling center. [RTW: Which means he KNEW the cans would be picked up in short order.] A way of helping someone without making them feel like a charity case.

I've been to places a lot worse than the US in terms of litter. Dominican Republic comes to mind.

Nothing in this reply justifies or excuses littering, IMHO.

[2lazy2retire]

I saw a young girl (age 10 or so) throw some garbage on the ground in our downtown area in front of her mom. Her mom took no notice and they just walked away and left it. Probably five feet from a trash can.

I was sitting at a light when I saw it. I thought seriously about rolling down my window to say something. But I was far enough away, that I wasn't sure I could convey the message.

And I know the mother saw it. The girl was obviously showing her mother something on the paper, her mom shook her head in response and the little girl wadded it up and threw it on the ground. Then they all walked away. I was sitting there thinking: W T F. I'm an adult and I would be deathly afraid to throw litter on the ground in front of my mom. Who sees their kids do that and doesn't care? FIVE FEET FROM A TRASH CAN!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPIsTKpAoE4

[2lazy2retire]

... I definitely get weird looks picking up trash from the street and throwing it into the municipal bins but it's gotta get people thinking about their habits, right?? My boyfriend is mortified by me but there are so many worse things I could do!!

I get THUMBS UP from passing drivers.  I guess they're not the litterers!  :D

Make sure you are not wearing orange or people will think you got a DUI

[Dicey]

Wow! This topic is a hot button for me right now and perhaps there's an approach I haven't considered. ANY suggestions would be appreciated. I live in an area full of mature trees. The local swim club thinks it's cool to TP every member's house, every season. The parents actually drive around after dark with carloads of kids so they can plaster the houses of their team mates with warehouse club size loads of TP. These are not high schoolers, they are mainly seven-to-ten-year-olds. DH and I have both observed them driving overloaded minivans and suv's with their lights off! Should you happen to see them and warn them off, they just return another night.

We have approached a neighbor (It's just a team "thing" I was told, point blank.) and the parents with the kids in the car that we caught in the act ("They're just having fun" the mom sneered.) It has recently come up on Nextdoor, with the responders about 50/50. The common retort is "lighten up". We have also spoken to the police, who have no interest in stepping in. We suggested making signs or chalk art in front of the swimmer's homes, but the team mothers, who seem to be hell-bent on reliving their glory days of high school will.not.stop. We are also in the middle of a prolonged drought. Nobody dares spray water in the trees to get it down, so the shit (sorry, couldn't resist) just hangs there forever, looking awful and blowing all over the street.

Now, I TP'd my share of houses when I was a high schooler. Part of the thrill was that we knew we'd be in big trouble from our parents if we were caught. And if we did, we'd be the ones out there the next morning cleaning it up. The idea that parents condone this, buy the TP and drive their little grade schoolers around late at night to enable this activity is a complete mystery to me. What the hell are they teaching these kids? That littering is completely okay because they're on the same swim team? WTF??

Any thoughts or ideas welcome, the more creative the better, as long as you don't tell me to "lighten up", haha ;-)

[Jakejake]

The local swim club thinks it's cool to TP every member's house, every season. The parents actually drive around after dark with carloads of kids so they can plaster the houses of their team mates with warehouse club size loads of TP.

Oh my god, I cannot even imagine the mentality behind that!
I guess I would follow the money. Someone is sponsoring the swim club, right? It might be a school, public parks and recreation, ymca.  Have you talked to that organization about the potential bad publicity they might get from this?

The other thing I might do if the police won't respond to a call about TP, is call about something else. A report of a suspicious car casing your neighborhood at slow speeds with the lights out. A report of someone driving erratically. Something that gets the police to investigate - and isn't a lie (don't get into false police reports!) And maybe talk to town council members.

[Dicey]

The local swim club thinks it's cool to TP every member's house, every season. The parents actually drive around after dark with carloads of kids so they can plaster the houses of their team mates with warehouse club size loads of TP.

Oh my god, I cannot even imagine the mentality behind that!
Oh, thank you for saying that!

I guess I would follow the money. Someone is sponsoring the swim club, right? It might be a school, public parks and recreation, ymca.  Have you talked to that organization about the potential bad publicity they might get from this?
Private swim club, affluent area. Even a Costco pack of TP is chump change around here.

The other thing I might do if the police won't respond to a call about TP, is call about something else. A report of a suspicious car casing your neighborhood at slow speeds with the lights out. A report of someone driving erratically. Something that gets the police to investigate - and isn't a lie (don't get into false police reports!) And maybe talk to town council members.
We're flipping a house right now in a neighboring community. We work late into the night and when we get home, the dirty deeds are usually done. The ones I've happened to see and warned off just come back another night.
LOL! My walking partner is a city council member. They have bigger fish to fry. And I don't want to bug her with stupid shit just because I have her ear. Yes, I do consider this stupid shit, it's just stupid shit that really, really bugs me. But then littering and senseless waste are hallmarks of anti-mustachian behavior, no?

[GuitarStv]

Silver lining . . . If the TP is still dry, how much of it can you gather and reuse in your own home? :P

[Cwadda]

Related question: does anyone ever through fruit remains into the woods? Apple cores, banana peels, orange peels, etc? I will stop doing so if it is detramental.

[Slee_stack]

Another topic where everyone does something that's wrong, yet somehow nobody is guilty of it?

I'm confused.  No, I, personally never litter. N-E-V-E-R.  Maybe when I was a kid and didn't know better.  I presume that many (most?) people are like me.

I can't say I've never UNINTENTIONALLY littered.  Like the pickup truck example I cited above, I might have left something in the backseat that could have blown out of the window unbeknownst to me.

However, anyone who intentionally litters just sucks.

[MustachianKentuckian]

The TP story...that infuriates me!!!

I also have left fruit remains in the woods...thinking they will quickly decompose and actually benefit the soil/environment.  Is this wrong? (legit question, not trying to start anything)

[2lazy2retire]

Another thing I really HATE is people who leave fruit remains in the woods, I mean adults as well, WTF?

[GuitarStv]

The TP story...that infuriates me!!!

I also have left fruit remains in the woods...thinking they will quickly decompose and actually benefit the soil/environment.  Is this wrong? (legit question, not trying to start anything)

I don't see how this could be a problem in small to moderate quantities.  There are a whole bunch of apple trees in an old derelict orchard behind the houses in our neighbourhood.  Each apple tree produces several hundred lbs of apples during the fall.  They're quickly eaten by various animals and are what wasn't eaten has fully decomposed by the next spring.  Usually by the start of winter you can barely see remnants of the apples left behind (I walk my dog through there all the time).

[Bracken_Joy]

Related question: does anyone ever through fruit remains into the woods? Apple cores, banana peels, orange peels, etc? I will stop doing so if it is detramental.

Apple cores break down really quickly and other animals want to eat, because they are so sweet. Peels though tend to just dry out. Unless they are mixed deep within the soil and mechanically broken up into very small pieces, they stay intact for a very long time.

[Cpa Cat]

Wow! This topic is a hot button for me right now and perhaps there's an approach I haven't considered. ANY suggestions would be appreciated. I live in an area full of mature trees. The local swim club thinks it's cool to TP every member's house, every season. The parents actually drive around after dark with carloads of kids so they can plaster the houses of their team mates with warehouse club size loads of TP. These are not high schoolers, they are mainly seven-to-ten-year-olds. DH and I have both observed them driving overloaded minivans and suv's with their lights off! Should you happen to see them and warn them off, they just return another night.

We have approached a neighbor (It's just a team "thing" I was told, point blank.) and the parents with the kids in the car that we caught in the act ("They're just having fun" the mom sneered.) It has recently come up on Nextdoor, with the responders about 50/50. The common retort is "lighten up". We have also spoken to the police, who have no interest in stepping in. We suggested making signs or chalk art in front of the swimmer's homes, but the team mothers, who seem to be hell-bent on reliving their glory days of high school will.not.stop. We are also in the middle of a prolonged drought. Nobody dares spray water in the trees to get it down, so the shit (sorry, couldn't resist) just hangs there forever, looking awful and blowing all over the street.

Now, I TP'd my share of houses when I was a high schooler. Part of the thrill was that we knew we'd be in big trouble from our parents if we were caught. And if we did, we'd be the ones out there the next morning cleaning it up. The idea that parents condone this, buy the TP and drive their little grade schoolers around late at night to enable this activity is a complete mystery to me. What the hell are they teaching these kids? That littering is completely okay because they're on the same swim team? WTF??

Any thoughts or ideas welcome, the more creative the better, as long as you don't tell me to "lighten up", haha ;-)

This happens in my neighborhood, too. We don't have kids, but live next door to a family with middle schoolers. One day we go out and our trees are all TP'd, along with the neighbor's. He's out there pulling TP down and explains that the kids started with the wrong house (ours), when his kids were the intended parties. Then he explains that this is just what they do - parents drive the kids around to do it.

We were dumbfounded.

I'm still perplexed as to why some idiot parent drove their idiot kids to the wrong house, watched while it got TP'd... And then when they realized their mistake... they just moved on?

[Spork]

The TP story...that infuriates me!!!

I also have left fruit remains in the woods...thinking they will quickly decompose and actually benefit the soil/environment.  Is this wrong? (legit question, not trying to start anything)

We often take fruit remains back into our own woods.   Animals eat them within 12 hours.  We used to have a game camera back there, which has since died, but we used fruit bits as bait for the camera.  (Raccoons love watermelon and watermelon rind, btw.)

[esq]

I can't fathom the mindset people who don't give a second thought to throwing their nastiness around.

Once I saw a guy sitting in his truck toss an empty water bottle on the ground.  I actually went up to him, looked him right in the eye and said, "let me get that for you".  He sputtered and tried to say it was an accident.   "Umhmm".  Picked up the bottle and threw it in the trash can which was 10 feet away.

The worst is dirty diapers in the parking lot.

[NumberJohnny5]

The worst is dirty diapers in the parking lot.

Ugh, I hate that. Seems to mainly be at Walmart. Sometimes they have the courtesy to not throw it on the ground and put it in the shopping cart instead.

Oh, is leaving shopping carts all over the parking lot akin to littering? Not too bad in Tennessee, but Florida? Oh my word. A few people accidentally put the carts back where they were supposed to go.

I like the system at Aldi (and all the big stores in Australia) where you put in a coin and get it back when you return the shopping cart to the correct place. Frustrating when you forget to bring any coins, or when you're at Coles but only have the keychain "coins" for Woolworths and Aldi. Once or twice I got the baby cart even if I didn't have our baby with me (they require no coins).

[cavewoman]

Wow! This topic is a hot button for me right now and perhaps there's an approach I haven't considered. ANY suggestions would be appreciated. I live in an area full of mature trees. The local swim club thinks it's cool to TP every member's house, every season. The parents actually drive around after dark with carloads of kids so they can plaster the houses of their team mates with warehouse club size loads of TP. These are not high schoolers, they are mainly seven-to-ten-year-olds. DH and I have both observed them driving overloaded minivans and suv's with their lights off! Should you happen to see them and warn them off, they just return another night.

We have approached a neighbor (It's just a team "thing" I was told, point blank.) and the parents with the kids in the car that we caught in the act ("They're just having fun" the mom sneered.) It has recently come up on Nextdoor, with the responders about 50/50. The common retort is "lighten up". We have also spoken to the police, who have no interest in stepping in. We suggested making signs or chalk art in front of the swimmer's homes, but the team mothers, who seem to be hell-bent on reliving their glory days of high school will.not.stop. We are also in the middle of a prolonged drought. Nobody dares spray water in the trees to get it down, so the shit (sorry, couldn't resist) just hangs there forever, looking awful and blowing all over the street.

Now, I TP'd my share of houses when I was a high schooler. Part of the thrill was that we knew we'd be in big trouble from our parents if we were caught. And if we did, we'd be the ones out there the next morning cleaning it up. The idea that parents condone this, buy the TP and drive their little grade schoolers around late at night to enable this activity is a complete mystery to me. What the hell are they teaching these kids? That littering is completely okay because they're on the same swim team? WTF??

Any thoughts or ideas welcome, the more creative the better, as long as you don't tell me to "lighten up", haha ;-)

I don't know if you can approach the right people to make this work, but maybe try to get them to make it into a fundraiser?  Basically an extortion fundraiser.  Pay the team or else your house gets TP'd.  It might at least reduce it.  Maybe they could do one of your fun ideas (chalk art) for the houses that have paid.

[Cpa Cat]

The TP story...that infuriates me!!!

I also have left fruit remains in the woods...thinking they will quickly decompose and actually benefit the soil/environment.  Is this wrong? (legit question, not trying to start anything)

We often take fruit remains back into our own woods.   Animals eat them within 12 hours.  We used to have a game camera back there, which has since died, but we used fruit bits as bait for the camera.  (Raccoons love watermelon and watermelon rind, btw.)

My asian pears are ripening now, and their life in my yard is as follows:

Early morning, squirrels climb the trees and knock down some pears. They take a few bites, but their #1 goal seems to be to knock them down.
Throughout the day: The squirrels revisit the knocked down pears often, occasionally carrying one away and hiding it elsewhere.
Evening: Rabbits come to munch on the half-eaten pears.
Night: Raccoons clean up anything that's left. There are never any "old" pears left the next day.

So while your fellow humans may not want to see your fruit cores, but the animals are happy for them. So I say just throw them off the beaten path.

[ClassyCat]

Littering is one of my biggest peeves, and my mom has to deal with it quite directly. Her house is positioned downstream, so everyone else in her neighborhood throws their trash into the stream, which flows down to her place and clogs everything up. It's infuriating, and no one else seems to care. I really don't have an adequate set of words to describe those awful people.

[esq]

The worst is dirty diapers in the parking lot.

Ugh, I hate that. Seems to mainly be at Walmart. Sometimes they have the courtesy to not throw it on the ground and put it in the shopping cart instead.

Ha!!!  I was going to say that, but somehow I thought surely WM isn't the only one.  I need to go with my first instincts more often.  (I also posted about carts on the Aldi thread.)  Cheers.

[zephyr911]

Yeah, I hate 'em. I pick up trash on my twice-daily dog walks, and it appalls me how careless people are. Yesterday I picked up a whole shopping bag of recyclables at the end of my street on a public walkway. I'll go back for the actual trash another day.

[NumberCruncher]

Related question: does anyone ever through fruit remains into the woods? Apple cores, banana peels, orange peels, etc? I will stop doing so if it is detramental.

Apple cores break down really quickly and other animals want to eat, because they are so sweet. Peels though tend to just dry out. Unless they are mixed deep within the soil and mechanically broken up into very small pieces, they stay intact for a very long time.

It's kinda gross though in general, especially on or right by a walking trail, when it's sunny and hot, and covered in flies...

Dogs also tend to investigate :-/  Not as potentially harmful as, say, chicken bones, but probably not good for them...

[sheepstache]

But considering 1% of the population are psychopaths with literally no conscience at all, I'm actually amazed society functions as well as it does.

Thank you. I have thought of this several times, regarding other areas, since reading this and it has helped.

[sstants]

But considering 1% of the population are psychopaths with literally no conscience at all, I'm actually amazed society functions as well as it does.

Thank you. I have thought of this several times, regarding other areas, since reading this and it has helped.

Yep. This helps me too, otherwise I get a little too worked up about stuff like this. I have to remind myself that it is not worth it to stress about and the real problem is that we live in such a plastic/disposable society in the first place! If we change the system, people wont have as much crap to litter with!

[magickelly]

My theory is some people either can't comprehend the idea of a shared space or are proud to NOT participate in the concept.

Like a sense of entitlement, can't be bothered to be part of the greater good. Assholes.

BINGO

I'm an American, but travel a LOT.  Littering is definitely not just an American attitude issue. 
People can just be gross and dicks, all over the world.

Edit to add: A little article about what I mentioned:  https://parisianfields.wordpress.com/2012/03/11/a-most-unusual-water-system/

Who's been to Japan?

You will NEVER see a shred of litter anywhere in Japan, who place the sense of "kan" - the harmony of nature - and community above the individual above all else. It's why you will be SHAMED and fined if you litter - shaming being the far bigger punishment than the fine. It's why you'll get dirty looks and admonished if you speak on a public train, even at a whisper level, on the busiest subway in Tokyo. It why the sober salarymen will apologize for their drunk, hazed colleague on a Friday night on the subway platform, even if the drunk man is contained, quiet and not bothering anyone.

It's actually why there is virtually zero crime and there are legendary stories of people leaving, for example, thousands of dollars of camera equipment on a train accidentally and finding it delivered to their destination days later with the Japanese going insane trying to locate and return the possessions to the owner. You shame your entire family if you commit a crime or steal and shame is a powerful deterrent in Japanese culture.

Americans, with the emphasis on individuality, have no shame.

I actually experienced first hand what's described in the article below.
http://japantravelcafe.com/japanese-culture-2/why-the-japanese-dont-litter

I travel around the world to watch a niche sport - around the US, Canada, Europe, Asia - a sport that is relatively tame in terms of fans... ok, it's figure skating. The Japanese are rabid figure skating fans and I could not believe that night after night, after a packed stadium of 15,000 at the World Championships over the course of five days, there wasn't a spot of litter anywhere in the entire arena. I've never ever seen this anywhere else for any sport, tame like skating or wild like soccer. Not even a stray napkin or tissue on the floor. And when I dropped something once an old lady yanked on my sleeve, pointed at the floor emphatically like "you dropped that, pick that up!"

I love Japan.

[Dicey]

Smokers:  "The world is my ashtray"

+1

I was so pissed the other day walking to work I saw a business woman walk across the sidewalk to throw her cigarette away on the street.  I was dumbfounded and all I could squawk out was a "Seriously?!" to her.  She looked a bit startled to even get that.  I came up with a lot more to say the next time though.  It's reason No. 3 to dislike smokers, after "will give me cancer" and "smells super nasty".

I can't believe how much fast food and random shit people toss on the street though, now that I have a house and it's on my driveway.

If you're stupid enough to smoke, then it follows that you are more likely to be a stupid asshole and litter also.

Yesterday, I was walking downtown and noticed a woman waiting at a crosswalk smoking a cigarette. I pointed out the big "No Smoking" sign at the crosswalk and the police station across the street. Said I loved that our city had banned smoking in and around all public buildings, parks and the entire downtown. Mentioned that the police don't have a ton of crime to fight on Sunday afternoons, so this was a particularly bad place to be smoking. Her response? "Well, I'm just walking through, so it doesn't matter." OMG, it was all I could do not to throttle her stupid ass.

Related: My brother just returned from his first trip to China. He visited the Great Wall and lots of other significant places. His most lasting impression? People everywhere just dropped their trash wherever they happened to be.(Not specifically tourists, his wife is Chinese and they were visiting her family. They went to lots of off the beaten path local spots, in addition to major landmarks.) He said he'd never seen so many litterbugs. He wanted to tap people on the shoulder and ask them to pick up what they dropped, but didn't want to risk his chances of coming home in one piece. Probably the wisest move.

[Geostache]

It grosses me out. Neighborhood kids used to leave their trash all over our yard (we were one house away from the bus stop). We'd have to go out and pick up trash at least 3-4 days a week. Regardless of where it occurs (urban, suburban, rural, or wild), it's inexcusable. Shows a distinct lack of respect for place of being.

Carl Hiaasen's book, Sick Puppy opens with a man following a litterbug on the highway. In typical Hiaasan fashion, the book unravels with a series of edgier actions by the person whom was hit with the trash against the litterbug. I highly recommend it.

[yuka]

ooooo, 3 thoughts on this one!

I think I could almost justify the cost of a dash camera for my car if:
a) I drove my car anywhere other than 6 miles each way to surf at my favorite beach in the mornings
b) It were good enough that it could give me video evidence of littering jerks so I could get them connected with the civil fines they so desperately need to be paying.

Never go to rural China (actually, any China) if this bothers you. I spent a week in a village in the middle of nowhere, where they grow tea in the mountains, and I spent a week imploring them (via translator for their local dialect) to stop dumping ALL of their trash in the river. They even knew that that was why they had rat and mosquito problems, but they just couldn't be bothered to care because they demanded that the government (national/provincial) do something about it, and then stopped caring when it never got solved.

I went on a 25 mile hike recently with some friends recently, and a few of them were former scouts. I pick up bottles and other large trash when I see it, but these guys were thorough. No scrap was too small for them to notice, and it was pretty enjoyable when the whole group started getting into it. Then, when we left our (car) campground the next morning, we did another astoundingly thorough sweep of the area to pick up every visible scrap of anything. It made me feel like I was more involved in the area, and I'm sure Yosemite, with how busy it gets, needs all the help it can get.

[yuka]

Anyone know the reason why smokers feel the need to through their butts out the car window?

Probably because cigarettes are gross. Who would want the waste from a burning fiberglass nicotine stick in their car?!? I hope the sarcasm came through because I'm currently unable to summon an adequate description of my antipathy for anyone who thinks like that.

[Retired To Win]

Another thing I really HATE is people who leave fruit remains in the woods, I mean adults as well, WTF?

There's a big, BIG difference between biodegradable, eatable fruit remains and nondegradable, will-be-there-til-the-sun-goes-nova bottles, plastic and cans.  As the OP on this thread, I'll state flat out that I have no, NO problems tossing an apple core or some orange rind into the woods as I finish the part of the fruit I want to eat.  The rest is most likely going to be found and eaten -- if nothing else, by insects -- in very short order.  (And just how do you think that fruit trees propagate in the wild, anyhow??)

[guitar_stitch]

I'm just gonna leave this here..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uo3cVuvVRUE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hx_EbsDjSBk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYW3rqIE3gc

There are ways, people.

[FatCat]

A couple of months ago I saw someone in the mall parking lot kicking all their trash out of their car. This was easily enough to fill a standard kitchen trash bag. There was a garbage can not that far from them, but they just kicked it out in the parking lot. And this parking lot was totally clean before they showed up, it's not like it was a trashed area already.

My yard is always covered in trash from people driving by throwing it out. This really pisses me off. It used to not be as bad. I think the trash throwing culture is coming back in the new generation of drivers.

I've traveled quite a bit. I can say cities in Brazil were worse, but cities in Japan were very clean.

When I was in China they were cleaning it up for the Olympics, so I can't really tell as far as the trash, but children would just potty on the sidewalk there. They would potty on the floors in airports and other public buildings too.  Parents would leave it and not pick it up. If they do #2 they would wipe and leave the tissues by the mess. This is considered normal. People thought it was odd that I thought it was odd. Next time you spot some dog poop left behind and get irritated, consider walking in the mall and spotting baby poops left lying around.

[Silverwood]

I live down the street from a 7-11 so on get tons of garbage blowing into my yard.

The best was when I worked at a tim hortons drive thru and as I handed a cop his coffee he saw the person behind him throw out his old cup.  The cop got out and held up the drive thru while he gave the guy a very  expensive littering ticket.

[shelivesthedream]

I'm thinking of buying one of those litter-picking claws and going out on a walk in my area to pick litter. This thread (and David Sedaris's litter picking antics on the radio) have inspired me!

[powskier]

Most frequent litter I see:
cigarette butt, beer cans, Mcdonalds wrappers.

I have picked up someones Mcdonalds bag they threw out of their window at a traffic light and tossed it back in their car. It was very satisfying and I believe educational for them.  Have had to promise to not do this anymore.......

[justajane]

I don't know if it was actually like this in the 1960s, but this littering scene from Mad Men has always cracked me up:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhcKuMjvcCk

My theory of littering is that a smaller number of assholes do it; yet these people are such assholes that they must do it all the damned time.

Maybe too graphic, but I've never understood the thankfully few times I've seen random tampons or maxi pads laying around. How does that happen? I can understand used condoms, even though it is absolutely disgusting, but feminine products?

[Daisy]

Another thing I really HATE is people who leave fruit remains in the woods, I mean adults as well, WTF?

There's a big, BIG difference between biodegradable, eatable fruit remains and nondegradable, will-be-there-til-the-sun-goes-nova bottles, plastic and cans.  As the OP on this thread, I'll state flat out that I have no, NO problems tossing an apple core or some orange rind into the woods as I finish the part of the fruit I want to eat.  The rest is most likely going to be found and eaten -- if nothing else, by insects -- in very short order.  (And just how do you think that fruit trees propagate in the wild, anyhow??)

Yeah, I don't mind fruit waste either...unless it's in the middle of the street where it looks odd. But out in the wild, why not? What's the alternative? Place it in a plastic garbage bag and then it gets hauled to a landfill where it will biodegrade there? At least throwing it in the wild will provide some nutrition for the wildlife.

[Daisy]

I almost had a heart-attack at a family gathering the other day when my innocent nephew let slip out that they eat on disposable plates every day. I asked to verify if it was really every day or occasionally but he said every day...right in front of my brother who supposedly is an environmentalist. I was shocked! I think they do it for convenience with their busy lives, but I just can imagine how much trash a family of 4 who uses disposable items for every meal can generate.

My mom's caretaker also used disposable plates for every meal. When my mom told me about it, I asked her to tell her to take a look at pictures of the islands of plastic in the Pacific Ocean. My mom reported back that she didn't know about this and was appalled by the trash and has now mended her ways. At least one win to report!

[Tigerpine]

I almost had a heart-attack at a family gathering the other day when my innocent nephew let slip out that they eat on disposable plates every day. I asked to verify if it was really every day or occasionally but he said every day...right in front of my brother who supposedly is an environmentalist. I was shocked! I think they do it for convenience with their busy lives, but I just can imagine how much trash a family of 4 who uses disposable items for every meal can generate.

My mom's caretaker also used disposable plates for every meal. When my mom told me about it, I asked her to tell her to take a look at pictures of the islands of plastic in the Pacific Ocean. My mom reported back that she didn't know about this and was appalled by the trash and has now mended her ways. At least one win to report!

I guess this is fairly common here in the deep south.  At least, I know of a restaurant my coworkers love that uses exclusively plastic forks, knives, and spoons and styrofoam plates for their clientele.  I asked about it, and the answer I got was that people in the South are poor, so this is what they do to save money.

[The Guru]

There's litter, and then there's this: I travel a pretty wooded road on my way to work. Saw a fox there once; deer pretty regularly. I watched a whole flock of turkey a couple days ago. Last night someone dumped a mattress & box springs, an old toilet and other LARGE trash just off the road. Absolutely infuriating.