Wanted: A Naked Toothpick

I've often said, "You can take the boy out of East Texas, but you can't take the East Texas out of the boy." And so, as an East Texas boy, I enjoy a good toothpick after a fine quality restaurant meal---like perhaps a Full Meal Deal from Dairy Queen. The toothpick is one of the simple, elegant, and yet functional pleasures of life. Today, however, that joy is marred by the ubiquitous nature of the wrapped toothpick.

Have we reached the level of germaphobia where every small stick of wood must be sealed in plastic? Apparently we have.

Even with $4.00 a gallon gas, Americans demand that a few thousand barrels of oil should be devoted to protecting toothpicks from the rigors of transport (imagine if the precious cargo was splintered) and the dangers of casual human contact. A once biodegradable oral health device is now destined to have a part of its legacy live on in landfill for hundreds, if not thousands, of years.

With your help, we can change this. Demand naked toothpicks and make the world a better place. (Yes, it is too late at night . . . but seriously, a plastic-wrapped toothpick is ridiculous.)