Pandering to Germaphobes

Lysol. It's synonymous with disinfecting. When we think Lysol, we think germs-be-dead. This has its place. Like... hospitals, doctors' offices, labs... places like that. But that wasn't good enough. We had to get all super-anal in our homes, too. Fear your toilet bowl. It's germy. Watch out for your kitchen. You could DIE from the germs in there. Your garbage pail could be out to kill you, too. Lysol Lysol everywhere. Sprays, cleaners... for our protection. Because Life is dangerously germy.

So, my Mom points out the latest gem from our friends at Lysol. Because, of course, they ARE our friends. They care about our health and well-being. It has nothing to do with profit. Silly. Snort. This new offering is a touch-free soap dispenser for your home. Their text:

Hands may come into contact with millions of germs every day. Hand washing is one of the most important steps to help stay healthy. But have you ever thought about those germs ending up on your soap pump?

Fact: Your soap pump can harbor a lot of bacteria.

Introducing the LYSOL® No-Touch Hand Soap System, it automatically senses your hands and dispenses just the right amount of soap that kills 99.9% of bacteria.

For use in the kitchen or bathroom, the antibacterial hand soap is enriched with moisturizing ingredients and comes in three great scents!

Never touch a germy soap pump again.

I declare, there are SO many things to say about this that I scarcely know where to begin! The FIRST thought that slams into my head is, ummm... aren't you touching the pump BEFORE you actually WASH your hands... and wouldn't those scary germs on the pump get washed off with the rest? (Is it me??) Next, and I've said this all over the place, we do NOT need anti-bacterial soap in our homes. All that does is get our into the environment, needlessly, to help create super-bacteria and super-bugs. Seriously. Look it up, I am telling the truth on that. And THAT'S what should be making us scared. C) That thing dispenses a butt-load of soap. I would think, way more than necessary. 4) There's yet another plastic refill bottle where it isn't needed. 5) Batteries. Even if you are using rechargeable batteries, do we really need some form of power to wash our hands? 4, FOUR, AA batteries. F) How durable is this thing? Are they going to have to be replaced too often, creating more waste for the landfills?

Soap. Bar soap. Wrapped in simple paper or not wrapped at all. That's it. It worked for decades before now, and I'm pretty sure people survived their bathrooms. But really, I cannot get off that first point I made up there. Are we such simpletons as to fall for this? Unfortunately, I think the answer is yes, because we have so many germaphobes in this world. Which, again, I find ironic, because their mistaken beliefs are creating more problems than we can imagine. Plus, I truly worry about what messages they are sending to the kids, and what dangerous lessons they are teaching them.

Soap. Plain soap and water. And a towel. Look into soapmaking, too... it's fun and makes nice gifts. So there. All good.