A funny, but not funny brief NYT article (no password needed) on how the world of venture capital is looking at “enviromentally friendly companies” and how the term “cleantech” is largely being abused by companies who are seeking funding. The idea here is that since cleantech is hot, these companies who are looking for investment basically dream up ways to qualify themselves. This is certainly not unexpected. Much like all business, it’s always about the money. No surprise there. It’s no different, really, then Whole Grain Fig Newtons being positioned as healthy or food companies slapping “organic” tags on food when it’s actually not USDA organic. Caveat emptor, friends.
I used to walk into the bathrooms at offices I worked in to see people flossing their teeth after lunch. In general, the first thought that entered my head was “okay, that’s just a little obsessive.” But time does strange things to people (people = me). I don’t floss after every meal, but I’ve lost the gut feeling of thinking that task may be obsessive in nature. Teeth are just bizarre. I am no stranger to the dentist’s chair, myself – spent nearly five years in braces and various mouth contraptions from sixth grade until junior year in high school, did everything they told me to do and just a few years later, my teeth aren’t crooked or anything, but I definitely don’t feel like the orthodontist did their job.
Since then, I’ve been in the dentist’s chair for many procedures and these days I go for cleanings every 3-6 months because I’m the one who’s obsessed with keeping these things as long as I can. Flossing? That was a foreign concept to me when I was young and virtually indestructible. For the last five years, though, I floss every night and then follow it up with Listerine, no matter what. Each time I go to the dentist now, I’m rewarded with “your maintenance is terrific” or something similar. I’ll take it.
The other wierd thing about teeth is that no matter how hard you try to keep them clean, heredity plays a major role. You could be that guy (obsessively?) brushing and flossing after each meal, but if your parents have bad teeth, there’s a damn good chance you will as well. That’s not terribly fair, but I guess it’s better for that to be hereditary than, say, being a dick.
What’s your policy on flossing?