Sure, the economy’s going to hell in the proverbial hand basket and oil is still spewing up from the floor of the Gulf of Mexico and Iran’s about to get nuclear weapons, but the Congress of the United States is spending its time on more important issues. Like potty parity in federal buildings.
Fox News has the details (and please note the remarkable pun in the opening sentence):
Men may still be left holding their peanuts at the ballpark while waiting for their dates in the ladies room, but a House panel on Wednesday was considering whether to rectify the disparity in wait times for the loo in federal buildings.
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee held hearings Wednesday on the “Potty Parity Act,” a bill that seeks to address the unequal number of restroom facilities for women in federal buildings by requiring at least a 1-to-1 ratio for toilets, including urinals, in women’s and men’s restrooms.
Supporters of the bill say women forced to wait in long restroom lines are at risk of health issues, including abdominal pain, cystitis and other urinary tract infections.
“A lot of times people, when I dealt with this bill, called it ‘potty parity.’ They made jokes,” said Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., who proposed similar legislation as a state lawmaker that was enacted in the 1990s.
“The fact is, it’s not a joke. Not only is it not a joke to women, it’s not a joke to men who go with the women who have to wait while they’re standing in line,” he said. “It’s also politically very popular. It’s the right thing to do and it’s catching up with the cultural lag in our society.”
Far be it from us to criticize the House of Representatives and its noble work, but with all the other crises going on in the world, it seems to us that this is the ultimate example of congress getting a little behind in its work.
Source: Fox News
This post was last modified on May 13, 2010
View Comments (5)
Is the toilet in the photo an Al Gore compliant model? Is it a green toilet? Does it save water? These questions must be answered or else I will worry about the planet.
Reminds me of the old joke on how to capture a Dem - when they come to get a drink, slam the lid on their head. Ewww, violent, eh?
I am glad that our government is finally getting to the #1 important issue of our times, well and the #2 one come to think of it.
I am not very happy about my tax money going into things that in all reality are not that necessary. Bigger bathrooms though in public bldgs if it will be used by the public I don't have much of a problem with, but if this is mostly for the congress people I do have a problem with that. There are more important things in the world. I am not surprised it is a democrat who is at the head of this...
Now with that said... Some women do not take a long time completing their "business" outside of the home. Barring women who have gastrointestinal issues, that is not something that is a problem for most women when they go into the public restroom. Many women at home do not take a long time completing our business, yet many men do. They take the newspaper or magazine in there at times and just take their time to complete their business and perhaps other business althogether. I knew a man who would go into the bathroom and take 30 minutes or an hour even in there and when I looked inside the bathroom, I found Playboys and other "reading" materials. I am sure that many men who don't do that while they are in the bathroom, take their newspapers in there while they do their normal business and it can take them a while. Obviously they cannot do that when they are outside, so they go in, do what they got to do, hopefully wash their hands and come out.
What happens is that many women want to freshen up (wash our hands throughly, put on makeup, perfume, fix our hair etc.) when we are outside. When a woman is outside of her home, is not going home any time soon, and cares about her appearance, it makes sense to do that after we use the toilet. If the bathroom is very small that unfortunately leads to less space for women to come into the bathroom while they wait for the next one to not just leave the toilet but actually leave the area with the sinks and mirrors. Overall when a woman is in her home she doesn't have to bother with the freshing it up so we go in, do what we got to do and come out.
Is it wrong to freshen up and look right? I don't know. I guess on dates I am sure a guy would appreciate if a woman freshens up. Is it bad to want to look the best that we can when we are outside? I guess that is up for discussion. After all it is not our fault if public bldgs decide to create small bathroom for women, especially if they KNOW that women can take some time in there to freshen up. The solution could be to create a bigger sink area or to have an area apart with a large mirror and a bar so women can freshen up. That way the flow of women who just want to use the restroom, wash their hands and go will be better. Usually if the bathroom is very small I just wash my hands and look in the mirror quickly and leave. If I need to apply something I do it discreetly outside. Unfortunately many women do not have that notion to just do the minimal fix up in there and complete it outside, which is unfortunate. However if the bathroom is large enough I will take my time.
I suspect that even with "potty parity," women would take longer then men to complete their business.