The concept of conserving resources, in an effort to save the world, has been on my mind, and I am going to elaborate here, on that concept. I brought up in my video, my experience of watching fellow in-mates waste toothbrushes. This I did with the understanding that many who heard these words, would take it as a bit of a joke, as rightfully they should. I feel that in order to make a point, or even get some ones attention long enough to attempt to do so, you must first put yourself into their shoes, so to speak, and I myself am more apt to pay attention to something that at first, I find amusing.

The first counter point that comes to my mind is that if you were in jail, you should just be thankful you’re getting a toothbrush, free of charge, and not concern your self with what others are doing with their toothbrushes. Ah ,.,., but to this I would reply, that’s my point, exactly. Society is paying the price for this toothbrush, and also the expense of disposing of the discarded item. Just because a person is in custody, does not, and should not, relieve them of social responsibility, in terms of the greater good, of that persons’ country, state, or world that they live in. If a person was buying the toothbrush every time they needed it, obviously, they would use it more than once, before discarding it. This is the kind of social behavior that causes high taxes, and also in the long run, the downfall of a society. To only conserve, when it is directly related to what amount you will personally gain or lose, in the short term, is a selfish, and hurtful way of thinking.

As a society, we need to educate our children by example. I was taught as a child, that if I wasted things, I would get in trouble. I also learned by watching my father, and mother, go about their daily activities. My father would crush the empty milk jug, after rinsing it out, of course. I knew why he was doing this, without even being told. The crushed jug, took up much less space in the trash can, and by it being rinsed, did not attract ants, or gnats to the trash area. So you see, without saying a word to me, my father had taught me a valuable lesson. One day I wasn’t thinking too good, I guess, and I placed a gallon jug into the trash can without attempting to crush it, at all. My father was furious! He removed the jug, and crushed it in his powerful hands. But Dad, I cried, I’m just a kid, my hands aren’t as strong as yours. He looked at me, as if he was going to stay mad, but then he smiled, and said well, I guess you have a point there, but you could have stepped on it. I was relieved, he wasn’t mad anymore. After that I would never forget, that there was usually more than one way to accomplish a task.

To this day, I am thankful to my father, for not being a push over. Without strong leadership, and intelligent guidance, I feel that individuals become wasteful, and that is why I am so thankful I grew up with both.