Oh, Poo, Revisited

India is one definitely one of the most bizarre nations on earth. On the one hand, it has a space program and a booming high-technology sector*. On the other hand, its government is working hard to get Indians to stop pooping outdoors.

You may recall that three years ago, I wrote a post about a major Indian government program called "Poo2Loo" that uses clever songs and animated cartoons with dancing poop to try to convince Indians, who are seriously short of public toilets (and of indoor plumbing in many areas) to stop relieving themselves at will in public places. The Poo2Loo campaign invested millions of dollars** to convince Indians that they really ought to do their business in appropriately private locations.

Which brings me to this article from last Sunday's Washington Post: India Turns to Public Shaming to Get People to Use Its 52 Million New Toilets. Yes, Dear Readers, the Poo2Loo campaign having not quite squeezed out*** its goal of getting Indians to quit defecating in public, "teams of government employees and volunteer 'motivators' roam villages to publicly shame those who relieve themselves in the open," such as this poor fellow, whose post-relief wash-up bucket was seized and broken by a local poop patrol, and who was presented with a rose as a peace offering ...

In some areas, according to the article, "... people without toilets risk having their welfare benefits taken away and can be barred from running for public office."

Hmm ... if people who are full of crap can be barred from running for office, perhaps India - without knowing it - is on to something. I wish I'd thought about this a year ago.

Have a good day. Poop in designated places to avoid embarrassment.

More thoughts tomorrow, when we unveil the latest collection of Great Moments in Editing and Signage. See you then.

Bilbo

* Your favorite help desk and telephone service center is probably in India, as are many of the online scammers looking to separate you from your money and your data.

** According to the article, the US Agency for International Development has also pledged $2 million annually and introduced ranking systems to trigger “(sanitation) competition between cities," and the World Bank has also offered a $1.5 billion loan to help encourage public sanitation efforts.

*** Sorry.