# You took a dump in a public toilet. Why didn't you flush? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 13, 2012, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-took-a-dump-in-a-public-toilet-why-didnt-you-flush/615640 "2012-03-13T13:09:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2012, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-took-a-dump-in-a-public-toilet-why-didnt-you-flush/615640/41 "2012-03-15T23:01:23Z")
> [@Dr.Woo](#): > > I saw a magazine article lately that caused an aha\* moment for me on this subject: apparently people are afraid of the aerosolized poop and pee that they just don’t flush. Very plausible. A lot of those newer toilets create quite a splatter experience. I always flush and then _step away very quickly._ And now, how about this: What’s with the new “waterless” urinals I’m seeing in men’s rooms? They look rather like a normal pee-pot but with no water. The drain hole at the bottom is completely filled with a plastic plug with a circular slot in it. You pee, and it all drains down through that. This is supposed to be some kind of new high-tech thing. How is this different from just having an open drain hole there? Maybe it has one of those moth-ball things underneath where you just don’t see it? ---
**Author:** ![SweetLucy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bcef8e/32.png) [@SweetLucy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SweetLucy)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2012, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-took-a-dump-in-a-public-toilet-why-didnt-you-flush/615640/42 "2012-03-17T20:48:50Z")
Where I work, a lot of women don’t flush :mad: ---
**Author:** ![nashiitashii](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7c8e57/32.png) [@nashiitashii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nashiitashii)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2012, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-took-a-dump-in-a-public-toilet-why-didnt-you-flush/615640/43 "2012-03-17T21:18:24Z")
I work with a lot of young adults, and it seems like a significant portion of them have NO IDEA what they’re supposed to be doing when they’re in there. From having phone conversations while you’re trying to poop to leaving behind a huge mess to not flushing and a plethora of other problems, I encounter a bathroom that is unacceptably dirty 2-5 times per day. Really, the only times when I encounter a bathroom that’s clean is when it’s either been freshly cleaned or the students are gone for the day. > [@mnemosyne](#): > > I was recently in a bathroom where someone had used her foot to flush - and left bits of grass, mud and what looked like gum on the handle. Seriously, there’s soap and water right on the other side of the door - be a grown up and flush with your hands and then go wash them. I’d rather that folks just used the handle with their hands as well, as I’ve seen some flushers broken by the “stomp on the flush handle” behavior. How difficult is it to wash your hands properly when you exit the stall? > [@Senegoid](#): > > I am amazed, flabbergasted, and generally DIZZgusted with the degree of filthiness commonly seen in public men’s rooms. (Are public ladies’ rooms commonly as bad? Or is this a man thing?) Women’s are almost always worse. For every guy who pees on the floor, there are four or five women who pee all over the seats. Add in those who are afraid of their own used menstrual products, and you’ve got a big problem. > [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > WTF is up with that?? Why do people have to use such huge wads of TP? My theory is that they’re making “I can’t get germs on me if they can’t see my hand” mittens out of the toilet paper. I’m what is often referred to as a “[hyper wiper](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3rW7DucQ8I)(see the 4:00 mark)”\* and I don’t use that many squares of TP per wipe for that reason. I am washable, after all. > [@BaconAndEggs](#): > > If I go somewhere with automatic flushers, why is there poop/blood/piss still in the toilet? I know when I get in the bathroom, the sensor flushes that thing at least 3 times when I’m in the stall. How do other pople get away from the sensor? My only explanation for ever leaving blood or poo streaks behind in the toilet is that, sometimes, after a few flushes, a residue is still stuck to the bottom of the bowl. I use a menstrual cup, and on heavy days that are accompanied by an intense need for a bowel movement, the blood and shit seems to stick to the bottom of the bowl with a quickness. I flush 2-5 times to ensure it goes away, but I can’t guarantee that there won’t be a minor speck of it left. :smack::smack::smack: I think you’re probably talking about the folks who leave the “floaters” and make “tampon tea” and not my behavior, though. \*Note: I really hate Tyra Banks’ encouragement of public toilet fear. Ever seen that video where she’s talking about her panties rubbing up against the front of the toilet when she’s hovering over the toilet seat? Yeah, I’m annoyed by all the stuff she’s implying in that segment. ---
**Author:** ![Lazlo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lazlo/32/9678_2.png) [@Lazlo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lazlo)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2012, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-took-a-dump-in-a-public-toilet-why-didnt-you-flush/615640/44 "2012-03-18T17:19:27Z")
Why don’t I flush? Because it’s funny and pisses way too many people off. I also intentionally sit off center so that most of my deposit sits above water. I got yer courtesy flush right here. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-took-a-dump-in-a-public-toilet-why-didnt-you-flush/615640.md?page=2)