Trump card

I am a big fan of the blog and books Stuff White People Like. Today, I want to add an item to the list for SWPL. That item needs to be cloth diapers. Why? one might ask.

• Cloth diapers are reusable, which is like recycling- something white people like (a lot).
• Cloth diapers require gear. The more gear you have the more points you get, but only for the right kind of gear, absolutely no plastic bags.
• Cloth diapers are (generally) not made by big corporations (white people hate big corporations). Cloth diapers are easily found on sites like Etsy.com, made with organic, unbleached hemp or cotton, with snaps that are BPA free and made by stay at home mom's who just want to save the earth from the scourge that is the disposable diaper. 
• Cloth diapers are the gateway drug to creating a "green" household.

I am (for the most part) a self admitted "white person", I am into a lot of the things on the list of SWPL. I admit it. I am not ashamed. I also think it is hilarious, that the same things I am poking fun at here are some of the exact thoughts that have run through my mind at one point or another during my cloth diaper journey. 

I think it should be on the list because in the competition between white people, cloth diapers can become the tie breaker for who wins. However, it has to phrased properly. You can't just say that it's cheaper than disposables. That could brand you as the "wrong" kind of white person. You must frame your argument for cloth diapers in the light of keeping all those disposables out of the landfills ("I don't want my child's poop preserved for 500 years in a landfill.") and protecting your child from all of the chemicals in disposables ("I don't want to put my baby in chemicals and plastic, do you?"). But there is a line here that is hard to see but once crossed you can't go back. You don't want to argue either of these points too strongly or you could actually lose points. This could result in your status changing from "enlightened, eco-conscious white person" to "crazed tree hugger of questionable personal hygiene," and no one wants that. So tread lightly when explaining cloth diapers to other white people, but don't be afraid to pull out your trump card when needed.