# Surfing in a Toilet...The Oceans ARE Polluted **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 5, 2004, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658 "2004-07-05T16:46:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mr.Roboto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/76d3ee/32.png) [@Mr.Roboto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Roboto)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/1 "2004-07-05T16:46:49Z")
Flash… The Worlds Oceans are Polluted! If you are an inlander and Believe the Government cares about the Ocean, you have Blinders on. As I sit on my Surfboard waiting for a wave, on the rare occasion when the ocean is clear enough for visual inspection… swirling around are bits of Toilet Paper,Plastics,balloons and/or condoms,paper,hair,wood,styrofoam,metal, Tennis balls,bilge waste,corpses of all types…birds,fish,doll parts… and then I see dolphins living in this shit… We are all Doomed! ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/2 "2004-07-05T17:04:44Z")
> [@Mr. Roboto](#): > > Flash… > The Worlds Oceans are Polluted! > > If you are an inlander and Believe the Government cares about the Ocean, you > have Blinders on. > > As I sit on my Surfboard waiting for a wave, on the rare occasion when the > ocean is clear enough for visual inspection… swirling around are bits of Toilet > Paper,Plastics,balloons and/or condoms,paper,hair,wood,styrofoam,metal, > Tennis balls,bilge waste,corpses of all types…birds,fish,doll parts… > > and then I see dolphins living in this shit… > > We are all Doomed! What about pants, are there any pants floating by? ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/3 "2004-07-05T17:50:09Z")
> [@Mr. Roboto](#): > > and then I see dolphins living in this shit… > > We are all Doomed! Well, the dolphins are, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/4 "2004-07-05T19:10:15Z")
Well, technically speaking, the dolphins shit in the water too. So fair’s fair. You don’t actually say where you are surfing. In many parts of the US, the situation has gotten somewhat better as the government has cracked down on local municipalities. Still, yes, people are slobs. ---
**Author:** ![catsix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e19b73/32.png) [@catsix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/catsix)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/5 "2004-07-05T20:33:08Z")
> [@](#): > > **Mr. Roboto** said: > corpses of all types…birds,fish, The rest of it makes sense, but just what are we supposed to be doing with seagulls and fish that die at sea? ---
**Author:** ![Dog80](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/6bbea6/32.png) [@Dog80](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dog80)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/6 "2004-07-05T21:43:51Z")
> [@astro](#): > > What about pants, are there any pants floating by? Queer pants? ---
**Author:** ![Nightwatch\_Trailer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/9dc877/32.png) [@Nightwatch\_Trailer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nightwatch_Trailer)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2004, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/7 "2004-07-05T22:13:49Z")
Scratch Atlantis off my list of must-visit places. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/8 "2004-07-06T00:02:37Z")
I encourage you to get in touch with your local waterkeeper. [http://www.waterkeeper.org/](http://www.waterkeeper.org/) ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Roboto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/76d3ee/32.png) [@Mr.Roboto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Roboto)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/9 "2004-07-06T00:42:49Z")
Catsix, pollution kills shorebirds and fish… I see gulls with fishing line,complete with hooks and sinkers wrapped around their feet,legs & wings… fish swallow all the gunk thinking it’s food. I’ve seen people inland throw their garbage and waiste into the storm drains. they don’t care that it ends up in the Ocean,they only want it out of the Hood or Barrio. ---
**Author:** ![catsix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e19b73/32.png) [@catsix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/catsix)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/10 "2004-07-06T01:22:03Z")
Lots of things kill birds and fish. Shit, whales commit suicide by beaching themselves. The corpses will not disappear if you no longer have garbage. By the way, I have seen seagulls go into a garbage barrel to eat what was in there, so even trying to dispose of things responsibly does not cure the problem. ---
**Author:** ![Kneepants\_Erasmus\_the\_Humanist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/54ee81/32.png) [@Kneepants\_Erasmus\_the\_Humanist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kneepants_Erasmus_the_Humanist)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/11 "2004-07-06T01:33:13Z")
Um…yeah…pollution sucks and all that, but what THE HELL are \*you \* doing about it? Besides writing poems (??) on a message board. These things that you have been posting are poems, right? The way you have them spaced…I dunno. You don’t… really need to hit “enter” after every few words…it makes it look like you are creating some sort o f p r ose. This is actually pretty… —fun. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/12 "2004-07-06T14:50:50Z")
I’ve seen things you wouldn’t believe I’ve seen dogs burning off the coasts of Orion ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/13 "2004-07-06T15:33:02Z")
Where were you surfing? I was in the ocean the other day and the sum total of (human) pollution I saw was one bandaid and one sanitary pad backing strip. And that’s about average. ---
**Author:** ![Chunky\_Bum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9dc877/32.png) [@Chunky\_Bum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chunky_Bum)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/14 "2004-07-06T21:53:39Z")
Killer surfing [video](http://towsurfingadventures.com/video/Hawaiian_watermen_high.mov) with clean water. 😉 I’m going surfing next week in FL. I can’t wait!! ---
**Author:** ![GaWd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f08c70/32.png) [@GaWd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaWd)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/15 "2004-07-06T22:34:58Z")
> [@Mr. Roboto](#): > > I’ve seen people inland throw their garbage and waiste into the storm drains. > they don’t care that it ends up in the Ocean,they only want it out of the > Hood or Barrio. So it’s only people in the “hood” or “barrio” that dispose of their garbage in the drains and oceans? I know the beach barbies sunning, oiling and eating and drinking in restaurants and on beaches NEVER get rid of their trash in inappropriate places/ways, right. Just shot your terribly constructed “rant” in the foot by showing exactly how objective you were being about this whole thing. Sam ---
**Author:** ![Yeticus\_Rex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a698b9/32.png) [@Yeticus\_Rex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yeticus_Rex)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/16 "2004-07-06T23:17:13Z")
> [@Mr. Roboto](#): > > Flash… > The Worlds Oceans are Polluted! > > If you are an inlander and Believe the Government cares about the Ocean, you > have Blinders on. > > As I sit on my Surfboard waiting for a wave, on the rare occasion when the > ocean is clear enough for visual inspection… swirling around are bits of Toilet > Paper,Plastics,balloons and/or condoms,paper,hair,wood,styrofoam,metal, > Tennis balls,bilge waste,corpses of all types…birds,fish,doll parts… > > and then I see dolphins living in this shit… > > We are all Doomed! We definitely need to show the dolphins how to properly dispose condoms after they’re done using them. Wood? You mean logs and/or 2x4’s? Happens naturally if it’s logs…sucks for surfers though… Hair??? Do I actually have to keep track of what little I have left on my head or (ack!) down there??? Corpses? You mean…\…human corpses?..hmmmm…better tell the government to do a better job informing the criminal element that “swimming with the fishes” is very non-PC. If it’s animal that’s specific to the ocean…feh…natural. Ok, I can see the issues with plastic, tennis balls (damn you, lazy Rover!), styrofoam and doll parts, etc…usually kids or lazy people on windy days. Let’s go beat them up. No wait, let’s let the government go beat them up. ---
**Author:** ![CanvasShoes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/74df32/32.png) [@CanvasShoes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CanvasShoes)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/17 "2004-07-07T00:19:46Z")
> [@Mr. Roboto](#): > > Flash… > The Worlds Oceans are Polluted! > > If you are an inlander and Believe the Government cares about the Ocean, you > have Blinders on. > > As I sit on my Surfboard waiting for a wave, on the rare occasion when the > ocean is clear enough for visual inspection… swirling around are bits of Toilet > Paper,Plastics,balloons and/or condoms,paper,hair,wood,styrofoam,metal, > Tennis balls,bilge waste,corpses of all types…birds,fish,doll parts… > > and then I see dolphins living in this shit… > > We are all Doomed! Well, if it makes you feel any better… Once, while foolishly having gone fishing with a former boyfriend on 20 mile river (in AK), I was sitting on the bank reading, and I saw this man, (coulda been a tourist, I’m not sure, was asian, and didn’t speak english, or was pretending not to speak english)…ANYWAY, he finished a can of soda and threw it in the river. I was so mad I jumped up and raced over to him (can was slowly swirling it’s way out of an eddy near the bank and fixing to enter the main current), and said “HEY, don’t throw trash in the river”!!! That’s when he did his “no english” bit. I grabbed his net and chased the darn thing down the bank, got it, walked back to him and handed him his net, and all the while glaring at him, threw the can in our little trash container. He left soon after. hmmmmmmmmmmm, wonder if I was too hard on him? ---
**Author:** ![Thaumaturge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/858c86/32.png) [@Thaumaturge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thaumaturge)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/18 "2004-07-07T00:36:48Z")
Nah **CanvasShoes** , you weren’t too hard on him. [This](http://www.despair.com/ir.html) is the perfect picture for people who litter. Or buy those stupid disposable one-use ‘wipes’ to clean their SUV with. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Roboto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/76d3ee/32.png) [@Mr.Roboto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Roboto)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/19 "2004-07-07T05:42:18Z")
I surf Huntington,Bolsa,Seal and all points down south… I don’t litter & I don’t eat Shark. Most surfers try to ignore the gunk in the water but it’s all around us. There is now a movement to ban cigarettes (butts) from the beach. The beach has been a giant ashtray forever. This will piss a few inlanders off and the civil libertarians but it’s good for the enviorment. Thanks CanvasShoes for the uplifter! I see tourists scouring the shore for treasures and they always pick-up pieces of translucent like gems…Green…Brown…Clear they are picking up pieces of broken glass that has been smoothed over by tumbling around in the sand. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658/20 "2004-07-07T13:07:12Z")
> [@Mr. Roboto](#): > > There is now a movement to ban cigarettes (butts) from the beach. The beach has been a giant ashtray forever. This will piss a few inlanders off and the civil libertarians but it’s good for the enviorment. See, now, this pisses me off. People are trying to blame one group for the bad behavior of everyone. My girlfriend and I both smoke like chimneys when we are at the beach, but we are very careful to gather up and throw out our butts when we leave. Should we be punished for our responsible behavior? Will banning our smoking suddenly clean up the sandwich wrappers, broken beer bottles, and dirty diapers that others left behind? Fuck no, but it will surely give a few lazy wannabe do-gooders a way to get a warm fuzzy without actually having to take any responsibility themselves. Pricks. Instead of banning one specific class of people, how about enforcing a simple carry in, carry out policy? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surfing-in-a-toilet-the-oceans-are-polluted/253658.md?page=2)