Earth Day is Over – Bring on the Germ Hype!

We’re living in a green age, people. True, it’s a slow and painful process, and there are plenty of people who still don’t see a need to take care of our planet, but America is getting greener every day.

Making the choice for more energy-efficient products and organic foodstuffs is becoming more popular, and therefore more available. That’s not to say the problem is anywhere close to being solved, but the need for green solutions has entered the public conscious. And by that I mean it’s all over the mainstream media.

In 2008 there was the increasingly popular documentary Food, Inc. that told us all about the wastefulness and uncleanliness of our nation’s food industry. Then there was the No Impact Man documentary in 2009 that let us follow the lives of a New York family as they tried to leave no negative impact on the planet, environmentally speaking. They went to extremes, certainly, but it was (and is) an experiment in just how much wastefulness we can do without. And, I admit I haven’t watched it yet, Food Revolution is this season’s TV newcomer, but it’s in the same ballpark.

It seems that as a nation we’re somewhat open to a change in our diets, provided it isn’t too pricey, but there’s something that still scares the begeezus out of us – germs.

Quick! Everyone break out your miniature disposable bottle of hand sanitizer – the GERMS are here! We may all get swine flu if we so much as look at a child with the sniffles! I think someone three blocks away just had a coughing fit – excuse me while I break out my SARS mask. (Or rather, buy a brand new one. Can’t be too safe, you know?)

When it comes to germs, our newfound green sensibilities seem to fly straight out the window. We still opt for the cleaners with bleaches in them. We use rolls of paper towels instead of reusable rags. Disposable paper products – toilet paper, tissues, diapers, feminine products – are a huge percentage of our country’s waste. We break out the antibacterial hand sanitizer at every opportunity.

Kleenex knows this. They anticipate and welcome our fears and know these fears overpower our thinking. And so, they have concocted a new, shiny product for us to buy, which they advertise like so:

A clean, fresh towel every time.

Every time.

According to Kleenex’s own website, “People in the U.S. dry their hands on cloth bathroom towels approximately 200 billion times a year.” So, in perfect Kleenex World, 200 billion of these disposable paper towels will end up in our landfills every year. What?

Now, I’m not one to advocate a completely paperless home existence, but I do think there’s a line, and Kleenex is crossing it. Sure, dispose of your toilet paper. We’ve figured that one out. Reusable cleaning rags instead of paper towels. Easy. Facial tissues are great, but try to use one up completely before you chuck it. Allergies anymore make it almost as wasteful to be machine-washing little loads of handkerchiefs every day. Diapers are a problem that need addressing, and I’m not saying you need to craft your own tampons but there are less wasteful alternatives. (A post for another day, assuredly!)

These disposable hand towels are wasteful and unnecessary. And thankfully, other people (David and Shea) find it a real kick in the teeth that they’re advertising this garbage (literally – ha!) right around Earth Day. Honestly, I thought it was a joke at first. Not to mention the fact that all this germophobia in recent years is leading to new, stronger germs, as well as children who have been so insulated from them that their immune systems can’t do their job. Kleenex’s own beloved CDC has expressed concern over these antibacterial products, and Anne Marie at About.com gives it to you short and sweet.

At any rate, I’m going to keep using my disgusting hand towel. My parents let me get sick as a kid, so I’m pretty sure my immune system is up for the challenge.