raleighnut
Legendary Member
- Location
- One of the 'Elite'
My old flat was quite close to Leicester University and at 'Graduation' day they'd have a big firework display, my moggie 'Kissa' used to sit in the window watching them
Fireworks season coming up - should fireworks be banned or better regulated to protect pets?
- Thread starter Time Waster
- Start date
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My old flat was quite close to Leicester University and at 'Graduation' day they'd have a big firework display, my moggie 'Kissa' used to sit in the window watching them
Profpointy
Legendary Member
As an aside it's worth repeating the story told to me an Indian pal and workmate. He said that when he first came over he was amazed how many of us "Britishers" were setting off loads of fireworks to celebrate Diwali. He had twigged by the time he shared the story; Diwali being late October so close to our bonfire night.
As a further aside, New Year's Eve is the best for fireworks where we live as we have a bay window'd second floor sitting room with a view across the city so at midnight the whole sky lights up and it's like the opening barrage for the Battle of the Somme all paid for by others for freeloaders like us to enjoy. On bonfire night it's not so good as people set them off at various times, and these days, various days.
And a final story from one of the caving clubs where they were have a bonfire night big party and had built a huge bonfire. At the appointed time some fusspot type was going round "please stand back, we're about to light the bonfire", and to humour him people rather grudgingly moved back, eventually ending up a excessive distance away whereupon a trail of fire whooshed along the ground to the bonfire and with an almightily whoomf it was instantly a raging inferno, having evidently been well soaked with petrol prior to zero hour. Mmm, maybe not a fusspot after all
As a further aside, New Year's Eve is the best for fireworks where we live as we have a bay window'd second floor sitting room with a view across the city so at midnight the whole sky lights up and it's like the opening barrage for the Battle of the Somme all paid for by others for freeloaders like us to enjoy. On bonfire night it's not so good as people set them off at various times, and these days, various days.
And a final story from one of the caving clubs where they were have a bonfire night big party and had built a huge bonfire. At the appointed time some fusspot type was going round "please stand back, we're about to light the bonfire", and to humour him people rather grudgingly moved back, eventually ending up a excessive distance away whereupon a trail of fire whooshed along the ground to the bonfire and with an almightily whoomf it was instantly a raging inferno, having evidently been well soaked with petrol prior to zero hour. Mmm, maybe not a fusspot after all
matticus
Guru
Have you ever been on a fire marshall/safety course? Nobody that has - and watched the usual videos theerin -would ever soak a bonfire with petrol...
Profpointy
Legendary Member
Yes I have, and neither would I !!!!
Time Waster
Veteran
No hypocrisy at all. As a responsible owner I want to do the best for my dog and the communityh I live in. I am not an issue with my dog as it can not chase bikes, cars etc. Poop is always picked up. It is under control at all times in public. It has been socialised and TBH it simply does not like most people it goes past as in no interest just ignores them. Any potential issues we spot and deal with. Just not month long firework season.
As I have said many times I am not arguing for banning anything or preventing anyone enjoying them. I am just calling for control of what is an incendiary expliosive device such that general public can not put themselves and others in harms way by using them unless they are licenced. There are so many advantages to greater control whether that is less A&E visits, no thugs throwing them at people or emergency services, no month long firework season with the various strains on both public services and animals. I see very few down sides as the chances there will be more organised firework displays than there are now. Which has dropped off a lot across the country. There will be more drive to reinstate them.
You know there is a legal regulation about not shooting legal firearms within a certain distance from your property boundary. There is no such thing with fireworks. In fact you see them going off in town centre, terraced back yards in my old town. Ridiculous to allow that. There is no control in where you can use them or who actually has access to them once bought. I know buying them you need 18+ ID but once bought there is no control requirements. These have serious potential for harm.
BTW the last firework display I went to that was not an organised one was at my parents when my son was about 2 or 3 yo. We all bought fireworks and launched them in a fair sized garden on a hill. However a rocket that was lit leant over and it went straight down the hill over the roof top and fortunately missed the houses out front plus next doors car. I think we stopped having them after that. Indeed it only happened because it was kind of the first year our son could appreciate it. Before that I was a child at the last firework display I went to that was not organised. That was on the farm of the grandparents of my friend in a field at the opposite end of the farm to where the animals were kept. In fact they tended to barn their animals or put them on a field furthest away from houses on firework season. That was fun not least because we stayed up late, had loads of cake and pop then ran around a dark field shining torches at each other for 2 or more hours. The fireworks were ten minutes of WOWs then back to running round the farm fields getting muddy. Primary school age, it was the running around and getting muddy that was most fun for us!! Happy days the 70s / early 80s.
As I have said many times I am not arguing for banning anything or preventing anyone enjoying them. I am just calling for control of what is an incendiary expliosive device such that general public can not put themselves and others in harms way by using them unless they are licenced. There are so many advantages to greater control whether that is less A&E visits, no thugs throwing them at people or emergency services, no month long firework season with the various strains on both public services and animals. I see very few down sides as the chances there will be more organised firework displays than there are now. Which has dropped off a lot across the country. There will be more drive to reinstate them.
You know there is a legal regulation about not shooting legal firearms within a certain distance from your property boundary. There is no such thing with fireworks. In fact you see them going off in town centre, terraced back yards in my old town. Ridiculous to allow that. There is no control in where you can use them or who actually has access to them once bought. I know buying them you need 18+ ID but once bought there is no control requirements. These have serious potential for harm.
BTW the last firework display I went to that was not an organised one was at my parents when my son was about 2 or 3 yo. We all bought fireworks and launched them in a fair sized garden on a hill. However a rocket that was lit leant over and it went straight down the hill over the roof top and fortunately missed the houses out front plus next doors car. I think we stopped having them after that. Indeed it only happened because it was kind of the first year our son could appreciate it. Before that I was a child at the last firework display I went to that was not organised. That was on the farm of the grandparents of my friend in a field at the opposite end of the farm to where the animals were kept. In fact they tended to barn their animals or put them on a field furthest away from houses on firework season. That was fun not least because we stayed up late, had loads of cake and pop then ran around a dark field shining torches at each other for 2 or more hours. The fireworks were ten minutes of WOWs then back to running round the farm fields getting muddy. Primary school age, it was the running around and getting muddy that was most fun for us!! Happy days the 70s / early 80s.
Time Waster
Veteran
I was in a certain northern city and some kids came up to me saying "penny for the guy". There was one issue with that plea. There was no guy anywhere near them, just a kind of begging or extortion as they were nearly adults and there were too many for me to deal with!! I am glad that form of begging has died out in places I live.
matticus
Guru
"hypocrisy!" has become the new lazy-man's default argument. Every time I see it now I suspect very weak logic to follow soon after. It's usually used as a fancier-sounding version of yeah-but-whatabout?!?
\thread_digression_soz
Profpointy
Legendary Member
Maybe I meant a whataboutery argument, but I still think it's well worth us cyclists, who are after all hated by many, not to be too judgemental of other activities which we might not like. If everything the majority dislike was
not allowed, don't be too confident that cycling would survive
FishFright
More wheels than sense
The anthem of the modern English "I don't like it so it must be banned"
Profpointy
Legendary Member
When I was in Australia I recall a letter in the Sydney Morning Herald calling for a ban of "this deadly craze" which turned out to be rollerskating, admittedly following someone having been run over. surprisingly the Ozzies are keen on banning things and / or having lots of rules, but they do have the rather good word "wowser" for those killjoys who want to ban or control everything that's good fun
Ming the Merciless
There is no mercy
- Location
- Inside my skull
Bottles falling over and diving for cover as the rockets flew straight towards you…
matticus
Guru
Some crazy logic on this threead (is it a portal to NACA? ED: Stop that now!)
- Perhaps drivers should have some sort of speed limits, and not drive after 10 pints of lager.
- You WHAT?!? How about we stop you walking outside?! Or talking to friends? Eh - see how you like THAT!!!!!!!! "
- Perhaps drivers should have some sort of speed limits, and not drive after 10 pints of lager.
- You WHAT?!? How about we stop you walking outside?! Or talking to friends? Eh - see how you like THAT!!!!!!!! "
lazybloke
Priest of the cult of Chris Rea
- Location
- Leafy Surrey
Distressed animals is just one tiny part of a much bigger problem: that antisocial uses of fireworks massively outnumber legitimate uses.
I wouldn't ban the things, but i'd be happy with severe restrictions on their sale & availability. And i'd still enjoy going to organised displays.
I wouldn't ban the things, but i'd be happy with severe restrictions on their sale & availability. And i'd still enjoy going to organised displays.
Profpointy
Legendary Member
More than the antisocial aspects of, say, dog ownership ?
Not every owner is considerate and collects their dog m's poo and hangs it from a bush like you're supposed to. Or less flippantly I'd hazard a guess that dogs kill or injure more people than fireworks
Just to be clear I love dogs, so I'm challenging the argument not calling for anti dog laws
MontyVeda
a short-tempered ill-controlled small-minded troll
- Location
- Lancaster... the little city.
...the cathrine wheel struggling to spin and Dad panicking that the shed it's nailed to might catch fire... meanwhile the seven year old's are sword fighting with sparklers
