by Chance Clift

Created on: March 22, 2009

"Water water everywhere, so let's all have a drink," said Homer Simpson, the quintessential American. Americans don't just waste water, we waste everything. The American culture is such that we want everything, and we want it now. Selfishness and impatience lead to the bad habit, even the American habit, of wasting water.

I wonder how many gallons of water are wasted a year on the American Hot Shower. Some cultures bathe in rivers; others bathe with a ladle and a bucket of rain water. These practices are "beneath" most Americans. In fact, after swimming in a river for leisure, most Americans would probably take a long, hot shower afterwards to further cleanse themselves.

I grew up on the East Coast, where grass will grow just by looking at it funny. After moving to the arid West, I was appalled by the amount of water wasted by homeowners watering their lawns. With the pride these people take in their front yards, it might be more accurate to call them LAWNowners watering their HOMES. Some public areas in western towns have sprinklers running for what seems to be 24 hours a day in the summertime. I have even witnessed city sprinkler systems, originally placed to irrigate patches of grass, that over time angle themselves to water the sidewalk.

Every time I eat at a restaurant, at least half the people I'm with don't even touch the complimentary glass of water we are served. We could probably build a pyramid of Egyptian proportions with the carafes of water we waste from the unwanted restaurant drinking water. Furthermore, many Americans put so much ice in their beverages that when it becomes too watered-down within minutes, they simply ask for a refill (which in most restaurants is in a new glass with new ice).

Americans are so accustomed to wasting water that we don't even recognize the little things we do every day to contribute to the problem: keeping the water running while we brush our teeth, doing laundry with smaller loads, washing our cars the day before it rains, etc. Even the innocent children's water-gun fight of old has been tainted by the advent of the Super Soaker.

Awareness campaigns and public service announcement is only a start in informing the nation about water conservation. To really get Americans to limit water waste, however, we would have to completely revamp the way we live, eat, work, and play. And that is a tough pill for most Americans to swallow.

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