REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK by William Wichert
What was that guy thinking?
He’s sitting on the subway and, like so many other passengers, is sipping a paper cup of coffee. It’s a beautiful Saturday afternoon, and smiling couples and families are starting on a trip to New York City for fun and entertainment.
But with one false move, this guy is going to throw it all away (literally) and leave a taste in my mouth that I can’t even describe. What does he do? He finishes the coffee and places the cup on the floor beside his seat. On the floor! Oh, and then he puts his feet up on the seats next to him. Like his crime wasn’t great enough.
You may notice that this column is full of rhetorical questions and exclamation points, but they are both needed in any discussion of one offense that I feel the utmost animosity toward, and yet still don’t completely understand.
That offense is litter, and the perpetrators are everybody. From the cute 3-year-old slamming his ice-cream cone against the pavement to the middle-aged man flicking a cigarette out his car window, everybody litters and everybody’s to blame.
The only difference is the man should know better. There’s enough ashtrays and trash cans around and dirty looks from people like me to show people that you’re not supposed to throw your crap on the ground.
Some people will blame the kids, high school teenagers listening to loud music and wearing baggy pants who don’t give a damn about their communities, but they can’t take all the heat. Adults of all ages, races, and genders litter and no one points the finger at them.
This guy on the subway is the perfect example. He was dressed in a dress shirt and slacks, and looked like he was on his way to a business meeting. But the little secret he was hiding is: He didn’t care.
Sometimes when I think about this guy, my mind goes blank and I stare into space, stumped by the one question pounding in my ignorant head. He doesn’t care? What does that mean? Doesn’t everybody have a basic, human drive to help their fellow man and the environment we live in?
"No, my son," a voice comes from somewhere. "This jerk just doesn’t give a … well, you know what I mean."
In the end, it seems, littering comes down to an attitude, a mindset about one’s community. By community, I don’t just mean where you live or where you work, but anywhere that you set foot.
By tossing garbage out your window or onto the street, you’re saying "screw you" to your neighbor. If that’s how you really feel, it may be easier, and more sanitary, to just knock on your neighbor’s door and say it to his face.
Of course, that could lead to violence. But you probably deserve it.
If you’ve read this far, you may be saying to yourself: "Come on, what’s the big deal? A few cans here or papers there never hurt anybody. People have been littering for centuries and human civilization has survived."
Well, it has survived, but it doesn’t have to be like this. For me, my reaction to littering comes down to two words. Because of the restraints of print journalism, those words will have to be: human decency.
It is just plain decent and respectful to pick up after yourself. The age-old query is: "If you were home, would you throw trash on the living room carpet? So don’t do it here." The answer is, no. You wouldn’t. After a while, you’d get tired of rummaging through piles of garbage to find the remote.

