After discovering television yesterday, I came across some absolutely disturbing programs televised as ‘survival shows’. I first began watching a channel named the ‘Discover Channel’ (though I don’t quite understand why, because the programming on it is quite useless) and watched an hour-long feature on a man by the name of Bear Grylls. Named ‘Man Vs. Wild’, the show documented Gryll’s journey in the outback of Australia. When he was unable to find water, he resorted to drinking his own urine (“Man Vs. Wild: Pee and Plastic”). I was absolutely appalled. Living in the United States, I had no idea that Neanderthals such as Bear Grylls existed, and I was immediately horrified when I realized that there may be more people like this in the world. After a quick Google search, I found another disgusting character by the name of Aron Ralston, who was pinned by a boulder on his arm for approximately 127 hours (Ralston 190). He TOO had drunk his own urine in the face of death. In my opinion, one should never use such survival strategies.
Some things are just obscene and the manner in which they are expressed can be offensive or repulsive to the average person or contemporary community standards. Why even address the fact that things like these exist? I believe an easier option for all involved is to shame these individuals that have survived by dirty, un-wholesome methods, and forget the urine drinking ever occurred. Some things are just immoral, and everybody knows. Open relationships, marijuana consumption, excess drinking, and sex – these things all cause those who ever participate in them to be disgusting, immoral human beings. It’s clear to me that drinking urine should be considered similar. I mean, is it really worth saving your life if you’re going to be so immoral and ‘ewwww-y’ after you do it? That’s just gross. Drinking your own pee is just not worth it. I would rather die than involve myself in such survival strategies.
Even more disgusting are those who drink urine in ceremonial rituals. Did you know that there are people in Siberia who take psychoactive mushrooms (yet another immoral substance, mind you), and then drink their own urine to maintain the effects in order to complete the ceremony (“Fly Agaric, Amanita Muscaria, Magic Mushroom”)? Blasphemy.
In my opinion, the only suitable use for urine (other than as a normal bodily function) is using it in order to execute people. For instance, in the mid 1900’s, women in Pakistan used to execute men that had broken the law by urinating in their mouths until they drowned in pee (Devereut 237). That is the death that any urine-drinker should suffer, whether they are drinking it for survival or ceremony. It’s just plain gross, and everybody with any kind of suitable moral standard (which I guarantee, if legitimate, is the same as my own) would agree with me.


Devereux, George. Dreams in Greek Tragedy: An Ethno-psycho-analytical Study. Berkeley: University of California, 1976. Print.

“Fly Agaric, Amanita Muscaria, Magic Mushroom.” Shamanic Journey, Shamans and Shamanism. Web. 15 Mar. 2012. <http://www.shamanicjourney.com/article/ 5981/fly-agaric-amanita-muscaria-magic-mushroom>.

“Man vs. Wild: Pee and Plastic.” Discovery Channel. Web. 15 Mar. 2012. <http://dsc.discovery .com/videos/man-vs-wild-pee-and-plastic.html>.

Ralston, Aron. 127 Hours: Between a Rock and a Hard Place. New York, NY: Atria Paperback, 2010. Print.