in defense of flushing.

i hate it when people do not flush toilets in public places. it's not right to hate things that people do unintentionally, but i don't think this is the case. it's never just pee and a few squares of toilet paper, it's always half a roll of toilet paper or the absolute worst case of the runs ever. or feminine hygiene products. used. sick.

that is to say, it was obviously a memorable experience for the person who left it behind so it's unlikely that they would just up and forget that the toilet wasn't flushed. in addition, it happens more often in restrooms with multiple stalls and less often in one-person set ups. the likelihood of being caught is lower, the more stalls there are. can you imagine leaving your mess of smeared tootsie rolls at a starbucks restroom, snickering inside, only to open the door and find that someone is waiting to get in? you're caught brown handed. so i have to conclude that, by and large, i believe that toilets are left un-flushed on purpose.

it bothers me for two reasons. one, it is so easy to flush a toilet. it's only a little bit of extra movement (even if you're a foot flusher) and to get the flush going only takes engaging with the lever for two seconds or so. the second reason is that if it is done on purpose, it's so offensive because of its passive aggressive nature. maybe it's some weird way of getting back at the man or at humanity in general, but really, i think if you really want to stick it to the man, you ought to go and try to hold a group of people hostage or at least try and rob someone. but not flushing? that's so ridiculous. don't be such an anonymous, limp criminal. really.