Cleaning Up America
If you were alive and watched television at any time in the early 1970s, you know this image: the "weeping Indian" who, after trash is thrown down at his feet, grieves for a land fouled by industry and consumption. The campaign worked: Americans today are far, as a whole, extremely responsible about disposing of waste in proper receptacles, and in many parts of the country, so obsessive about recycling that, when visiting a place that doesn't practice it, they find it painful to dispose of a bottle or can they know is destined for a landfill. You're probably also aware that the actor portraying the weeping Indian was not, in fact, native American. He was Iron Eyes Cody, an Italian-American who was cast repeatedly throughout his career as one. He's most famous for this public service announcement, made in 1971, and deservedly so: as I said above, it worked. Whether you're driving down a highway, walking through a city, or camping out in the country, Am...