as for putting the seat down, I really think the whole thing is quite ridiculous. anyone who sits without looking is just asking for trouble – there could be all sorts of nasty things on that seat.

David A. makes a good point though, you should put the lid down to flush because the spray from the toilet gets all over everything in the bathroom. Including toothbrushes, clean towels AND those paper seat covers in public restrooms which renders them useless. Dr. Oz said that on Oprah. We’ve started doing this at home so the seat down all the time.

In the up position, it’s much more difficult to soil the toilet. And, if up were the default, then women could control when it were put down.

Which brings me to the smartest toilet seats I’ve ever seen. The toilet seats in the vault toilets of some of the state/federal parks are spring loaded up. That way, if you really want to sit on the seat, you pull it down and hold it down until you’re done. Then when you stand up, it pops up out of the way for the next wayward pisser.

As far as falling in goes, or sitting on the rim, that’s just stupid. I mean really, look before you sit.

You know guys sit to do their business sometimes too, and I’ve never heard a dude bitch about sitting on the rim because he couldn’t manage to lower the seat on time.

Finally, if you want a sensible note: “Close the lid and flush” Closing the lid goes a long way toward controlling bathroom odor, by reducing the aerosol plume emitted during the flushing process.