[rlmorel]

When I was a kid living in Japan back in the Sixties, they had open sewers, and we would flush things down the upstairs toilet and then see if we could run outside and see the thing we flushed down seconds before float by!

To your point, you can flush a Rolex watch down a toilet, but what happens after that is not guaranteed.

[Vigilanteman]

I lived in Japan for 2 years during the 70's, 14 years from 1988-2002 and was back for a 3 week visit in 2016.

It is truly amazing how far they have advanced in toilet technology especially with your 1960's vignette added on.

During the same time period, they've advanced from open sewers to toilet seats which heat your derriere, clean your backside, rinse out your anus and even (if you are willing to pay the price) analyzes your urine. And, of course, from open sewers to high grade closed piping.

We, by contrast, use basically the same toilets we used back in the 60's with slight design changes and slightly lower water usage and from metal to plastic piping.