I teach my 7th graders about the dangers of dihydrogen monoxide.
I bring in a graduated cylinder of it and we talk about how itâs used in nuclear power plants and gmo crops. How inhaling even the small amount Iâm holding can lead to suffocation or even death. Itâs found in vaccines and cancer cells, but also in infant formula and pet food. It is a huge component of acid rain, can cause severe burns, and has been found in places that were thought to be the most pristine and unpolluted locations on earth.
We talk about how there are little to no regulations on this chemical. No bans, no warning labels, and most manufacturers donât even have to disclose their use of it in their products.
My students are outraged. We talk about what we can do. Create posters and flyers to spread awareness. Contact our senators with petitions to ban DHMO. Spread this information all over social media.
Then I explain that the real problem with dihydrogen monoxide is thatâŚ.when I am thirstyâŚthere is just nothing else as refreshing, and then I watch their looks of absolute shock and horror as I drink the entire vial down.
I. Fucking. Love. This.
This is how misinformation works. How propaganda works. How manipulation works.
may our education be stronger than fake news
Amen.
To those who donât get it:
âDihydrogen monoxideâ is the chemical name for water, AKA H2O.
Like⌠think about the social model of disability for a second. You have people who are disabled and, say, need to use a wheelchair to get around but they canât because everyone insists on building stairs everywhere because the vast majority of people are just fine navigating steps. Except for the people who canât who are turned into second-class citizens.
Now, if everyone used wheelchairs everything would be ramps and using that chair would no longer be an actual disability because the world would be made in order to accommodate it.
Anyway, people talk a big talk about how this is totally different because wheelchairs are for addressing a physical limitation. Except, itâs not, really, because the human body canât really tolerate anything cooler than the tropics at night without getting awfully uncomfortable without wearing clothes.
Without clothes human beings wouldnât be able to inhabit 90% of the places we do but we can because we all wear our little fur prosthetics and live in a culture that accommodates and supports the use of those prosthetics (laundromats, closets, ectâŚ) so we donât even notice that we have these limitations until we forget to wear our clothes when we leave the house.
pain-lies-inside 