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Old 01-01-2017, 14:16
jaycee331
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Quite a few New Year’s fireworks going off in my neighbourhood last night.

Out walking my dog this AM and plenty of firework remnants to be found on paths and in verges etc.
Not on the same scale as after bonfire night, but they're there.

Whilst many arguments have been made over the years about banning domestic fireworks in terms of noise pollution, pet and baby bothering, one argument I've never heard is the LITTER!

If someone drops a cig butt or a chocolate wrapper, they should rightly be fined.

Why doesn't the same consideration apply to fireworks?
Isn't every rocket launched essentially a wilful despatch of litter? The leftover stick and cardboard tube has to land somewhere! Does this even come into peoples minds?

Over the years I've had them on fall on my driveway, roof, in my gutters and once knew a neighbour whom literally had their car damaged by one landing on the roof of their brand new motor.

Whilst we may be tempted to excuse in it on the basis of it being an infrequent twice a year thing, does that mean it would be OK for me to lob kebab skewers and toilet roll tubes onto folks roof tops, gardens and driveways twice a year too? Of course not, so why do we seem to tolerate the shrapnel and littering that fireworks leave behind?
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Old 01-01-2017, 14:28
ba_baracus
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I got woken up this morning by some absolute arsehole letting off fireworks at 6am
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Old 01-01-2017, 14:37
zounds
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Isn't every rocket launched essentially a wilful despatch of litter?
It's outrageous. Anyone who let's off rockets should be made to go out with a torch and search the neighbourhood until all their sticks and bits of burnt cardboard are accounted for.
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Old 01-01-2017, 14:41
koantemplation
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I got woken up this morning by some absolute arsehole letting off fireworks at 6am
We must be in the same area or have similar a holes around, as there were fireworks going off at 6am this morning here too.
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Old 01-01-2017, 15:00
Meepers
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And how exactly do you plan to prove whose rocket remains they are you? Film the fireworks and manage to somehow record the remains falling to earth?
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Old 01-01-2017, 15:01
Evo102
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It's outrageous. Anyone who let's off rockets should be made to go out with a torch and search the neighbourhood until all their sticks and bits of burnt cardboard are accounted for.
And the same goes for those who indulge in those charity balloon releases. I hope they've all got passports.
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Old 01-01-2017, 15:03
Elvisfan4eva
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I got woken up this morning by some absolute arsehole letting off fireworks at 6am
Couldn't take the dog out last night as they started at 8pm. Why not wait until nearer midnight or, hello, AFTER MIDNIGHT. Don't remember them starting so early last year. Such loud bangs, one made me jump out of my skin nearly, never mind the dog.

Ban all firework sales to the general public. They can watch them on TV like I did, and see and hear Robbie too!
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Old 01-01-2017, 15:05
Union Jock
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Who cleared up after the massive firework display in London?
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Old 01-01-2017, 15:06
Elvisfan4eva
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I'd say Westminster council. Nice bit of overtime and double pay for the bin men there.
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Old 01-01-2017, 15:06
Maxatoria
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As a kid I used to go around collecting the wooden sticks from the rockets as they made good sticks for when my dad would do some painting and need something to stir the paint.
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Old 01-01-2017, 16:30
jaycee331
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I'm chuffed to hear I'm not alone on this!

And how exactly do you plan to prove whose rocket remains they are you? Film the fireworks and manage to somehow record the remains falling to earth?
Well we can't can we, hence the discussion on whether this is a fair reason to re-consider the sale of these "litter bombs"!

They make my dog freak out too. But I do exercise some live and let live tolerance on that. We all have to share this planet and I recognise that not everyone likes dogs, or enjoy the sounds of barking dogs etc. So I don't feel my right to own a dog top trumps families and children wishing to enjoying some fireworks in their back garden.

But dog or no dog, the litter really does my head in. And it's only since getting a dog and doing daily walks that I realised just how much crud fireworks leave behind!
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Old 01-01-2017, 16:32
Meepers
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Couldn't take the dog out last night as they started at 8pm. Why not wait until nearer midnight or, hello, AFTER MIDNIGHT
Because if you have a family not everyone is up until Midnight?
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Old 01-01-2017, 17:03
Evo102
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But dog or no dog, the litter really does my head in. And it's only since getting a dog and doing daily walks that I realised just how much crud fireworks leave behind!
I think we'll have to wait a long time before the level of crud from fireworks gets even close to a fraction of that produced by mans best friend and isn't cleaned up by the owner.

Perhaps we should ban.....nah, lets all just rub along together and refrain from banning things we don't like.
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Old 01-01-2017, 17:17
Creamtea
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Couldn't take the dog out last night as they started at 8pm. Why not wait until nearer midnight or, hello, AFTER MIDNIGHT. Don't remember them starting so early last year. Such loud bangs, one made me jump out of my skin nearly, never mind the dog.

Ban all firsework sales to the general public. They can watch them on TV like I did, and see and hear Robbie too!
The utter f*ckwits were letting them off from about five o'clock last night. I thought the idea was to let them off at midnight?!?!
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Old 01-01-2017, 17:25
Pitman
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Ban all firework sales to the general public. They can watch them on TV like I did, and see and hear Robbie too!
I'd prefer to ban Robbie, I missed the fireworks because I couldn't bring myself to switch on the telly in case I saw him prancing about
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Old 01-01-2017, 17:28
Elvisfan4eva
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The utter f*ckwits were letting them off from about five o'clock last night. I thought the idea was to let them off at midnight?!?!
Me too.
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Old 01-01-2017, 17:28
Pitman
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As a kid I used to go around collecting the wooden sticks from the rockets as they made good sticks for when my dad would do some painting and need something to stir the paint.
good lad, decorating supply shops should pay kids 10p a stick for these paint stirrers, the firework litter would be gone in no time
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Old 01-01-2017, 17:29
Elvisfan4eva
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Because if you have a family not everyone is up until Midnight?
Yes but it's not New Year until midnight.
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Old 01-01-2017, 18:34
_ben
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I was shocked at the amount of firework debris I came across on the dog walk this morning. It started off quite small, could have been from people's private firework displays in their own garden, but as I carried on down the road it got bigger and bigger - some of the stuff I found was obviously from large professional displays and frankly looked big enough that you wouldn't want it landing on your head!

And how exactly do you plan to prove whose rocket remains they are?
Simple, with one of these...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counter-battery_radar
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Old 03-01-2017, 08:40
jra
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Couldn't take the dog out last night as they started at 8pm. Why not wait until nearer midnight or, hello, AFTER MIDNIGHT. Don't remember them starting so early last year. Such loud bangs, one made me jump out of my skin nearly, never mind the dog.

Ban all firework sales to the general public. They can watch them on TV like I did, and see and hear Robbie too!
Yes, that's the way to go.

List me some of the things you like to do and I'll try and get all those banned.
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Old 03-01-2017, 16:26
jaycee331
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I think we'll have to wait a long time before the level of crud from fireworks gets even close to a fraction of that produced by mans best friend and isn't cleaned up by the owner.
Oh I cannot disagree with a word of that. I always pick up after my dog and it truly disgusts me how many ignorant, thoughtless dirty vagrants don't. And having a dog myself I am very much affected by it because I'll be walking all those same routes and trails as those filthy disrespectful chumps who leave it behind for me and my dog to step in.

But I digress...

Perhaps we should ban.....nah, lets all just rub along together and refrain from banning things we don't like.
I am genuinely in two minds on this. I'm rarely in favour of knee jerk/ban everything responses, but I just cannot reconcile in my mind the laws of the land regarding litter, against what appears to be a total lack of respect, awareness or education in respect of the public litter and debris that fireworks leave behind.
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Old 03-01-2017, 16:30
wench
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One of the problems with banning fireworks is that it may lead to black market fireworks which may not conform to any standards, or worse still, home made fireworks.

This occurs often in HK, where fireworks sold to the general public are banned, but they get round it by buying cheap knock offs from China which inevitably blow up in your face!
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Old 03-01-2017, 16:38
sodavlac
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At least it's all biodegradable. More sticks fall off the local trees and the cardboard will rot away fairly quickly.
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Old 04-01-2017, 12:35
deans6571
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Couldn't take the dog out last night as they started at 8pm. Why not wait until nearer midnight or, hello, AFTER MIDNIGHT. Don't remember them starting so early last year. Such loud bangs, one made me jump out of my skin nearly, never mind the dog.

Ban all firework sales to the general public. They can watch them on TV like I did, and see and hear Robbie too!
...yawn. Lets ban everything, just because YOU don't like them.

Yes, that's the way to go.

List me some of the things you like to do and I'll try and get all those banned.
..well said that man!
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