The great butter debate

Some years ago I remember Dear Abbey running a series of columns in which people responded to the question "Which way should you hang your toilet paper on the holder. Should it unroll over the roll from the top or under the roll from the bottom?"  Needless to say there were strong feelings on this topic and I suspect there still are. In fact, there have been a couple of times when I've found the roll in my guest bathroom reversed. In case you're wondering, I'm an over the top person. Now I've been involved in a similar controvesy.  I was at a friend's house for a dinner meeting and she apologized because the butter she put on the table with the rolls was still hard.  She had forgotten to take it out of the refrigerator. That brought a comment from the other end of the table "You know you don't have to keep butter in the refrigerator." to which came the response "Oh, yes you do. It will go bad if you don't." This set off a lively but short discussion of butter keeping practices. Personally, once I've unwrapped a stick of butter I put it in a butter dish and keep it in the cupboard. I've never had it go bad yet and it's always ready to spread. I do, however, keep my unopened butter in the refrigerator, or if I have extra, in the freezer. So now you know my position on this spreading controversy. Of course all this really means is that I'm one of those people who eats real butter, usually melted on steamed vegetables. I'm pretty sure butter is on the 'good for you' list right now but even when that changes (and you know it will) I'll keep eating butter.