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Baudelaire Children cleaning toilets with toothbrushes

TheOriginalBigBlue

Gold Meritorious Patron
At 23:40 of Season 1, Episode 1 “The Bad Beginning, Part 1” from Netflix’s “A Series of Unfortunate Events”, the evil nemesis Count Olaf makes the Baudelaire children clean the toilets with toothbrushes.

The book, “The Bad Beginning” was written in 1999. Scientology’s, “The Hole” was started in 2004 and information about it and the practice of making RPFers clean toilets with toothbrushes became public in 2009. Netflix released this series in 2017.

So when I saw this scene I had to ask myself, “Has cleaning toilets with toothbrushes in the RPF become ingrained in popular culture?”

I am wondering if the toothbrush scene is in the original book or became a later addition in the making of this video? If it isn’t in the book then I think we can assume that the inspiration may have come from Scientology. If the inspiration for the use of toothbrushes was indeed taken from The Hole then could the series’ Character of Count Olaf be partially inspired by DM?

http://www.villagevoice.com/news/sc...utives-the-prisoners-past-and-present-6714390

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Series_of_Unfortunate_Events_(TV_series)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Series_of_Unfortunate_Events

Toothbrushes.jpg
 

Enthetan

Master of Disaster
So when I saw this scene I had to ask myself, “Has cleaning toilets with toothbrushes in the RPF become ingrained in popular culture?”

Cleaning bathrooms with toothbrushes is something that military recruits occasionally find (or rather, used to, years ago) themselves doing, which is likely the origin of the practice in the pseudo-military Sea Org

[video]http://www.goarmy.com/videos/play/cleaning-with-toothbrushes-basic-training-q-a.html[/video]
 

phenomanon

Canyon
Cleaning bathrooms with toothbrushes is something that military recruits occasionally find (or rather, used to, years ago) themselves doing, which is likely the origin of the practice in the pseudo-military Sea Org

[video]http://www.goarmy.com/videos/play/cleaning-with-toothbrushes-basic-training-q-a.html[/video]


It's not that unusual a practice. I still clean the grout in my bathroom with a toothbrush.
 

TheOriginalBigBlue

Gold Meritorious Patron
Cleaning bathrooms with toothbrushes is something that military recruits occasionally find (or rather, used to, years ago) themselves doing, which is likely the origin of the practice in the pseudo-military Sea Org

[video]http://www.goarmy.com/videos/play/cleaning-with-toothbrushes-basic-training-q-a.html[/video]

The military is preparing people to win real wars. I get that and I think you are probably right that this was the original inspiration for the practice in the Sea Org - where they are not preparing people to win real wars.
 

TheOriginalBigBlue

Gold Meritorious Patron
It's not that unusual a practice. I still clean the grout in my bathroom with a toothbrush.

Yes, but we use them for detailing, not as the only and primary brush for cleaning toilets and bathrooms. Making someone do that for a public or dorm bathroom in the SO is just messing with their head, (pun intended).
 

Jump

Operating teatime
Yes, but we use them for detailing, not as the only and primary brush for cleaning toilets and bathrooms. Making someone do that for a public or dorm bathroom in the SO is just messing with their head, (pun intended).


If it is supposed to be their own personal toothbrush, I call criminal negligence of their health.
 

lotus

stubborn rebel sheep!
I do use a toothbrush to clean my bathroom - without any coercition though :biggrin:
(it's useful to clean around the faucets and the bolts on the toilet seat, and also to bleach the grout twice a year)

Altough my bathroom is a little cleaner than this one! :biggrin:
This one is in need of water pressure gun :blush:

(In the SO it is intended as a way to humiliate, dominate and for punishement)

I've seen a youth cleaning the whole marble hall out of the crystal ballroom (Flag slave land base)...with a toothbrush,paper and water, no soap. The kid was ashamed and humiliated. This was my 1st call out to wake up!

* After using the toothbrush around the toilet , it must be cleaned properly to keep it of use for home visitors .
:biggrin:
 
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TheOriginalBigBlue

Gold Meritorious Patron
If it is supposed to be their own personal toothbrush, I call criminal negligence of their health.

In the video Count Olaf tells the Baudelaire children, “Hold onto the toothbrushes, you’ll need them for your teeth”. So in the video they are using their personal toothbrushes.

I don’t know if they use their personal toothbrushes in the military but in some circumstances it wouldn’t surprise me. Even so, they could probably go to the commissary and get another one whereas on the RPF that may not be an option.

I don’t recall there ever being a distinction made in the stories about people in the RPF being made to use their personal toothbrushes or general toothbrushes designated for that purpose. To my thinking even in the RPF they didn’t make people use their own personal toothbrushes to clean toilets expecting them to then use them on their teeth.

Did they?
 

TheOriginalBigBlue

Gold Meritorious Patron
You can get packs of nylon cleaning brushes, slightly cheaper than toothbrushes.

If you are removing old caulk by delicate surfaces like vinyl flooring that can be easily cut or damaged by metal tools, you can carve the handle of toothbrushes into a scraping tool to suit the exact shape for the job. Soften the caulk with denatured alcohol.

I get it. By the time I toss a toothbrush there is nothing left that even an RPFer's, RPFer could use.
 

lotus

stubborn rebel sheep!
You are right.
Every time I go to the Dentist I am given a new toothbrush. I throw the old one into my cleaning supplies to use around the house. They are free, and the perfect size to do 'detailing' work.
No need to buy anything.


IDEM :biggrin:

My visit was this week And got a brand new brush to clean the toilet...lol
(and I had 0 rotten tooth...lol)
 
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