Legal Ruralism: More on clotheslines

Monday, October 26, 2009

They are the topic of today's Room for Debate on the New York Times website, "Rethinking Laundry in the 21st Century." Read other posts regarding the issue here and here.

aoue said...: Thanks for linking to this story, as well as your discussion of the clothesline debate in previous posts. I was not aware that clotheslines could be so contentious.

Now that I think about it, the lease agreements of every apartment I've rented have included a provision preventing me from hanging my laundry outdoors. While I thought this provision was a little silly, I didn't give it much thought, opting for the convenience of a dryer. After reading the arguments against using a dryer as a means of energy conservation, I think that the prohibitions on clotheslines are a little absurd.

Not only are the environmental benefits apparent, but I also wanted to note that I like the aesthetic they create, mainly because it imbues urban spaces with a rural, idyllic mystique. Traveling around Italy several years ago, I was struck by how colorful the streets of its cities were — with overlapping clotheslines and windowsill gardens. I wonder why Americans disagree with me, while most Italians probably would not. Are most Americans too detached from our country's rural places too appreciate the simple, frugal aesthetic clotheslines create?; October 29, 2009 at 11:25 AM

Monday, October 26, 2009