Myles Orozco (letters, Dec. 16) reminded me of the scene from the television series “Mad Men” where Don and Betty Draper leave trash in the park after a picnic. That scene was shocking to me, but it exemplified the attitude Americans seem to have about disposing of their garbage. Toss it out and let someone else deal with it. My wife and I often go on walks through our Stevenson Ranch neighborhood that we jokingly refer to as trash walks. I carry a grabber-reach tool, and she carries bags to deposit trash. We almost always fill at least one bag on our walks, which are only about 1.5 miles.
We contrast what we see on our trash walks in Stevenson Ranch with what we saw this year on our first trip to Japan. Almost no trash anywhere. Tokyo is considered the world’s largest city by population. We walked nearly 20 miles around Tokyo over three days, yet we saw less trash there than on our walks in Stevenson Ranch. I was forced to conclude that my fellow Americans are self-centered slobs who are disconnected from their communities. Our Tokyo guide explained that a Japanese citizen who threw trash on the ground would not only shame themselves but also shame their family, school, or employer. Americans prize their rugged individualism, but that is not an excuse to turn our nation into a version of the Disney/Pixar movie “WALL-E,” where the planet is completely buried in garbage.
Mr. Orozco is right that education is a necessary step in addressing litter in Santa Clarita. But education alone will not solve the problem. What is also needed is a cultural shift — one that places greater value on community, accountability and respect for shared spaces. If adopting that mindset means valuing the kind of shared responsibility we witnessed in Japan, then when it comes to litter, I’m happy to say, “I think I’m turning Japanese.”
Philip Wasserman
Stevenson Ranch
