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05 Nov 07 - 05:55 PM (#2187101) Subject: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: GUEST,Tunesmith Today, Nov 5th - is Guy Fawkes Day. A day for firework displays in the UK. Unfortunately, the weeks leading up this day are also an excuse for letting off fireworks. I believe, by law, anyone can - and does - let off fireworks until 11pm ( it is now 10.50pm and I can hear them just outside my house). Every year more and more - and louder and louder - fireworks, are used. Now, does this sort of thing happen in other countries? |
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05 Nov 07 - 06:11 PM (#2187106) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Bainbo Three exceptions to the law. Tonight they can let them off till midnight, and on New Year's Eve and Chinese New Year they're allowed to go on till 1am. It's been quieter then ususal in the run-up to Guy Fawkes on this bit of the coast of North East England, and the bangs and cracks which started at dusk tonight had gone away by about 10pm. |
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05 Nov 07 - 06:12 PM (#2187109) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Jean(eanjay) The Gunpowder Plot was an English thing so as well as the UK other commonwealth countries will celebrate Guy Fawkes Day. Fireworks do seem to be associated with celebrations, and other countries do use them for such but I'm not sure they go on week after week both before and after the event. I'm not keen either. |
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05 Nov 07 - 06:27 PM (#2187119) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Peace They happen here, too. Not a good thing, IMO. |
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05 Nov 07 - 06:38 PM (#2187121) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Rapparee I don't mind those that are either professionally staged shows OR which are "ground effect" (fountains, for example). I really don't care for things that explode. |
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05 Nov 07 - 06:53 PM (#2187131) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Victor in Mapperton Kids no longer buy traditional fireworks as I remember them. What kids light these days are small bombs. I watched local kids this afternoon carrying three foot rockets and ten inch bangers. A local shopkeeper told me lorry drivers on continental runs are bringing them in and selling them illegally. The local ambulance crews are seeing some horrific injuries due to the amount of black powder in these devices. |
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05 Nov 07 - 07:02 PM (#2187138) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Peace What was that line from "Armageddon"? 'Close your hand over a fire cracker. Someone's going to be opening your ketchup bottles for you.' Something like that. (Saw it many years ago and my memory is failing.) |
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05 Nov 07 - 07:15 PM (#2187151) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Richard Bridge Darwin? |
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05 Nov 07 - 07:23 PM (#2187155) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Victor in Mapperton Guest, there seems to be a flourishing trade in illegal fireworks these days. One reputable dealer said on local television that his trade was down last year by 40% because very powerful fireworks are freely available illegally that would require a licence if bought from his premises. |
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05 Nov 07 - 07:25 PM (#2187157) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Nickhere Actually I must confess to rather liking fireworks - one of the few 'honourable' uses of gunpowder. They give great entertainment. I know some people are disturbed by the noise, but in fairness - fireworks tend to be limited to a few timnes a year and regulations exist to ensure they do not go on all night. That's a far better situation than your neighbour's ghetto blaster going dunmph!dunmph!dunmph! like a relentless jackhammer all night as the cops explain on the phone 'there's not much we can do actually...have you tried telling them?" (no, I don't like the look of their dog). Or unnattended car alarms (all car key rings should have a receiver attached that emits a shrill alarm at the same volume as the owner's car alarm until the absentee owner returns to their car and turns off the offending alarm). Some say old people and animals are frightened by them. Maybe - I often hear dogs bark at them, but then dogs will also bark at any loud noise, car alarms, passing cats etc., But as pointed out above, fireworks are limited mainly to a few times a year, domestic animals can be brougt indoors. Old people know these bangs are caused by fireworks, not falling artillery shells (unless they're the unfortunates in Iraq) so what's the big deal? I suspect the real reason why old people are afraid of the bangs sense they are likely to be connected to other worse anti-social behaviour by young (and old) louts. That's a separate issue that needs to be sorted. And then what about hunting season when armed men go after unarmed innocent ducks (my sympathy clearly lies with the ducks, and I make no apology for it), the dull slam of their shotguns echoing across wetlands to nearby housing estates? As for injuries - yes, young kids shouldn't be using fireworks unsupervised and irresponsible adults who supply them to kids should get a rap on the knuckles! |
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05 Nov 07 - 07:36 PM (#2187162) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Little Hawk I love fireworks. They are reserved only for special occasions, and they're fun. The noisy ones don't bother me, and the ones that make a bright show in the night sky are marvelous! Let's have more fireworks, I say! My viewpoint on this matter has remained unchanged since I was a kid, and I'm glad of it. I didn't like crabby old carping fussbudgets then, and I still don't like 'em much, truth be told. As for those who wish to eliminate ALL imagined dangers from the lives of both children and adults, I say...you are pursuing a will-o-the-wisp and you will never run it to ground. And a good thing too. |
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05 Nov 07 - 07:38 PM (#2187164) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Peace When I was a kid the biggest fireworks available to us was the Roman candle. You see some of the stuff available today? We be talkin' one fu#kin' BIG BANG. |
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05 Nov 07 - 07:51 PM (#2187171) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Bobert Luv 'um... But 'round 10:30 'er 11:00 its time fir them to be over ifr the night... New Years Eve being the exception, of course... I go up to Pennsylvania once a year by up 'bout $300 of the good stuff... I got a "Prefereed Customer" card which means that when I buy one of anything I get the 2nd one free... Then when I get to $300 I get a $100 assortment of really good sh*t... Like 19 shots stuff that you light and then you get 19 real solid booms with lots of stuff happening overhead... I mean, $300 and you can put on one heck of a show for a private party... B~ |
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05 Nov 07 - 07:53 PM (#2187174) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Little Hawk Well, when I was a kid you could buy cherry bombs all year round at the variety stores...and me and my friends did. We used them to blow up tin cans, toy soldiers, bunkers we made out of dirt for our toy soldiers, and so on. You now cannot buy cherry bombs legally at all in the province of Ontario. But kids played outside most of the day then if the weather was half-decent. I guess times have changed. |
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05 Nov 07 - 08:29 PM (#2187200) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Donuel I saw Hap the clown lose 3 fingers when he fumbled to light an m80 to simulate the backfire of his clown car at the fair. |
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05 Nov 07 - 09:08 PM (#2187220) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Little Hawk OUCH! Well, you have to be careful, don't you? |
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05 Nov 07 - 09:14 PM (#2187222) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: The Walrus I have no objection to fireworks on November 5th (or even, as this year, the weeken adjacent), what I do object to is having so many set off before (and after) the date, that it turns October and November into a minitature sound effect of the Western Front barrages. |
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05 Nov 07 - 09:35 PM (#2187229) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Sorcha I have no objection to SAFE, RESPONSIBLE use of them but I do object to homes and thousands of acres set on fire from them. In the US July 4th is Independence Day....and it's hot and DRY then. Just have a little sense please. Ever see an RV/caravan burn? They go FAST. So does a grass fire. If there is a person in the RV or a house on the grass, just say Oh well, it sure was fun. |
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05 Nov 07 - 10:18 PM (#2187243) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Rapparee ... Old people know these bangs are caused by fireworks, not falling artillery shells.... No, Nick. I've seen people 40 years removed from a war zone react to an unexpected explosion (especially the kind that whistles first) as if they were still there. One of them was my own brother, two July 4th's ago. If you've been there once, it's always there with you. The trick is to let people prepare themselves first, don't surprise them. PTSD can show up at the most inconvenient times. |
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06 Nov 07 - 02:29 AM (#2187300) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: GUEST,Tunesmith First, there are no restrictions on fireworks in the UK being set off any time of the year; it's my birthday - let's set off some firteworks; I come home from the pub a bit merry - let's set off some fireworks, And, so on. Fireworks are now an all round year phemonenom. Why have laws stricting noise in society and then allow fireworks! Crazy! Fireworks are just bad news. The elderly mother of a friend of mine has spent every night for the last month believing she was back in WW11 and that Germans were bombing the area. And god knows what the effects of fireworks are on wildlife. |
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06 Nov 07 - 04:12 AM (#2187322) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Stu "I didn't like crabby old carping fussbudgets then, and I still don't like 'em much, truth be told." Well, this crabby old carping fussbudget says ban them now - no reason to sell them in a society incapable of self-restraint. Too many injuries, too noisy for weeks as the cider-swilling offspring of the town's miscreants throw them at people's houes, chuck them in shops (check out http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/manchester/7071486.stm), and send my dog into a state of perpetual terror for weeks. I'm all in favour of the big displays - love 'em, but keep them on open sale to the the UK public - time to accept we are just not responsible enough. |
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06 Nov 07 - 04:13 AM (#2187324) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Mo the caller From Down the Lane forum "I have just had a distressing mail from one of the girls on my forum. A house a few doors down her lane had a firework party tonight and didn't tell her. As she was out shutting them away, and she has about 30 chickens, the fireworks started, panicking them all. Two died in front of her from heart attacks, and one is now indoors very, very poorly. I think we should shut them away early rather than late for a week or so. Wendy" I don't remember WW2, but spent the nights in under the table, under the stairs. Is that why I hate bangs? |
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06 Nov 07 - 04:19 AM (#2187327) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Jack Blandiver It was lovely last night watching the fireworks blooming over Southport (some seven miles across the Ribble estuary) without being able to actually hear them. |
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06 Nov 07 - 04:42 AM (#2187339) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Folkiedave November 5th England? Tame. These are fireworks. Manresa Spain Festa Major. |
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06 Nov 07 - 05:09 AM (#2187351) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: The PA I dont mind fireworks. But, Our dog is absolutely terrified of them. Even if we have the radio on quite loud and she cannot hear or see them, she can sense them and curls up shaking and panting for hours. Its quite sad to see. Our horses are quite spooked by the loud bangs, and we have to make regular trips to the stables to check that they are OK. We worry to death about the stables, hay barn, and hen houses in case a stray rocket should land and cause a fire. And finally, husband suffers from hearing problems including a type of tinitus and the bangs and vibrations from some of the larger fireworks make him quite ill. So I suppose they dont really have a lot of support from our household. |
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06 Nov 07 - 05:11 AM (#2187352) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: skipy http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2004/20041836.htm Skipy |
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06 Nov 07 - 05:24 AM (#2187355) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Bainbo Dave - I don't like to make generalisations about an entire nation. But here goes ... The Spanish aren't really known for their attention to health and safety, especially where fireworks are concerned. I've heard of firework factories blowing up. I've seen something like that Manresa clip, in Valencia, where a net was spread out above an entire plaza, with fireworks tied in it like an explosive canopy. The one that really gave me the shivers, though, was at a fiesta in the Basque country, where they did a sort of "junior bull-running" The "bull" was a handcart with a tin head and horns on the front, and lit fireworks all over it. This was pushed at speed through the streets, dodging left and right, as giggling children scattered, or ran up try to touch and run away. Everybody seemed to enjoy it. Maybe I should learn to relax a bit more. It's all part of the Iberian attitude to life and death, I suppose. |
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06 Nov 07 - 05:59 AM (#2187368) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: ard mhacha It is Hallow`een which is celebrated here in the north of Ireland, Guy Fawkes day was unheard of, regarding fireworks anyone who keeps animals would like to see them banned forever. The sight of a terrified dog, cat, or fowl cowering and whimpering in fear should dispel all of that rubbish about entertaining the kids, during the past `troubles` fireworks were banned here, so we had peaceful nights, with none of the local vandals letting of their fireworks from early September through to November, and this throughout the wee small hours. For the sake of the animals and our overworked firemen ban them. |
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06 Nov 07 - 06:05 AM (#2187371) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: redsnapper I do not personally care for them. Dangerous things unless professionally operated. RS |
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06 Nov 07 - 06:30 AM (#2187382) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Liz the Squeak There are laws pertaining to the use and carriage of fireworks in the UK. You'll find them roughly outlined here. Local councils may have additional restrictions and there has been pressure to restrict nationally to licensed displays and religious or traditional celebrations only. Walrus: fireworks now spread over October and November because there are a couple of religious festivals that fall often around this time. In the middle of October we had Eid - roughly described as the Muslim Easter, and this Friday we have Diwali - the Hindi festival of Light. Both are celebrated in many areas with lights, bright colours and fireworks. LTS |
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06 Nov 07 - 12:56 PM (#2187640) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: GUEST,Tunesmith In my home town there is an annual 3 day firework competition. I reckon the noise from it can be heard over an area of 30 square miles! Wonderful. |
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06 Nov 07 - 01:11 PM (#2187649) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: alanabit I like fireworks and find them entertaining. However, I don't see any excuse for allowing them to fall into the hands of children - or indeed anyone, who is not under considerable restraint and with a very good reason to use them responsibly. Whatever way you look at it, by definition fireworks are explosives - and I can see no excuse at all for allowing them to be passed around openly. A child, who throws a firework into a bus, for instance, can cause absolute carnage. (I have seen it happen). You can't expect kids out in groups to behave any better, but you can expect adults to prevent them from obtaining fireworks in the first place. |
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06 Nov 07 - 01:21 PM (#2187659) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Nickhere Fair point Rapaire. a realtive of mine even had trouble with slammed doors. Still, as you said, the key is preparation, not to surprise them. Tunesmith - obviously some sort of compromise is needed. A period when the public is allowed to set off fireworks freely around certain festivities; then the rest of the year when exceptions could be made for weddings, parties on permit from the police (who would have to take into account the number of requests, the location etc.) Ard mhacha - I have a cat and she doesn't seem to be troubled by them. But that's just her, I guess. I thought Guy Fawkes was the big thing up north (in certain areas anyway)? Maybe they've nothing left after the July 12th.... |
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06 Nov 07 - 01:26 PM (#2187662) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: PoppaGator I enjoy the public displays that I call fireworks, but really despise firecrackers set off by private indiviudals, generating much more sound (noise) than visual effect and presenting very real dangers of personal injury and loss of property to fire. Sorry if I come off as a spoilsport, but this activity is simply something that I have never enjoyed ~ and as I get older, I just get more strongly opposed. Here in New Orleans, we don't do Guy Fawkes (obviously enough, and fortunately), but some folks revel in every opportunity they can find to set off firecrackers. (Please don't tell them about the Gunpowder Plot!) Independence Day (July 4) and New Years are the main events for our local explosives enthusiasts, and there's no curfew that anyone observes. Midnight, logically enough, is the high point of the New Year's noisemaking, and that custom has sort of leaked over into the July 4th activities; midnight of the 3rd, signalling the arrival of the 4th, is one excuse for igniting gunpoweder, and the blasting continues through 24 hours until it's time to signal the end of the festivities with another climactic volley when the 4th finally gives way to the 5th at midnight. One extremely unfortunate custom connected to New Years that has thankfully not caught on for the midsummer firecracker fest is the discharge of firearms into the open sky at midnight of Dec 31. A young woman tourist was killed here several years ago by a falling bullet, and since then a determined reform effort ("The New Years Eve Coalition," if I'm not mistaken) has had fairly good success in putting an end to this very dangerous practice. It's very difficult, however, to stamp out the practice completely; shooting live ammo into the night sky is a long established holiday tradition in these parts. If the perpetrator is not caught in the act of firing, there is little chance of catching him/her later ~ bullets may come back down to earth miles away from where they had been fired from. Several roofers have told me that falling bullets are a leading cause of leaking roofs all over the city, and that they rarely go up onto a roof for any kind of repair work without finding at least one or two lead slugs embedded in one layer or another of the roofing material. |
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06 Nov 07 - 01:27 PM (#2187664) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Rapparee Fireworks, especially the larger firecrackers and "bombs", can easily be converted into fragmentation weapons. I know, and the results can be pretty damned awful -- including death. No, I'm not going to tell you how to do this, for those who would know already know how. Fun? Yes, and a professional fireworks display is beautiful. Even the smaller fountains and things can and often are lovely. I enjoy them. But I don't enjoy the sh*t-for-brains who...well, you know. |
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06 Nov 07 - 05:49 PM (#2187892) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Liz the Squeak Had to call the cops out this evening for a gang of kids who were in a nearby street, throwing lit fireworks at passing cars. I got one under the rear wheels as I turned the corner and, realising I'd left something behind, circled the block to go pick it up. As I was going around the same corner the second time, they were hurling a lit firework into the path of a cyclist. Then they decided it would be a wheeze to pile up the fallen leaves and set a lit firework in the pile to smoulder and then explode. It's people like that that make me think a law against selling fireworks might be a good thing. LTS |
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07 Nov 07 - 04:12 AM (#2188165) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: ard mhacha In answer to Nickhere, to my knowledge Guy Fawkes Day has never been celebrated in any part of the north of Ireland, it was always Halloweve, Tunesmith I forgot to include elderly people also in terror from the vandals with fireworks. |
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07 Nov 07 - 04:30 AM (#2188168) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: goatfell In Australia they have banned Fireworks because of stupid people that got injured or set fire to things so they banned them it is now illeagl to own them mind you some Australians still have fireworks. |
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07 Nov 07 - 05:10 AM (#2188185) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: goatfell I hate Fireworks ever since I was a wee boy that same goes for Christams as well, I mean eating dinners that you don't like and meeting people that you don't like and then getting presents that you hate, but then you have be hyopicrictal about all and lie through you teeth, oh that's nice. |
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07 Nov 07 - 02:36 PM (#2188498) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: GUEST,Vega My dog and cat have requested that a new law should be implemented, in which fireworks are only allowed to be let off on November the 32nd, from the hours of 04:30 until 04:31. And, any infringement of the said law would result in the perpetrators having to be shot - slowly. |
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08 Nov 07 - 04:42 PM (#2189267) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Nickhere Maybe we should just shoot anyone who breaks any law. No exceptions! Ardmhacha - i'm surprised, I'd have thought loyalists would have made a big fuss over guy fawkes? |
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08 Nov 07 - 05:09 PM (#2189283) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Little Hawk We don't need a law against fireworks, because that simply ruins the situation for all the people who wish to use fireworks in a safe, responsible manner. There's no sense outlawing everything that certain people misuse...you'd end up having to outlaw everything!!! I'm seious. Every fecking thing imaginable would have to be outlawed. No, what we need is roving groups of well-armed individuals..."the Watch"...equipped with great big bloody swords and crossbows...and on behalf of all you people who get upset about this that and the other fecking thing because a few immature people misuse it, the Watch could behead those aforesaid immature people who are caught misusing it. Soon those few troublesome people would either be gone or they would have been intimidated into good behaviour by witnessing the sudden end of some of their mates. Then the Watch could further improve society by beheading those crabby old people who still found a lot of stuff to bitch and complain about anyway. ;-) Thus we would have fewer laws...fewer troublemakers...and fewer complainers. It would make for a much nicer society, and one where one could still enjoy fireworks on holidays, but in a safe fashion. I'm for it. ;-) |
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08 Nov 07 - 05:40 PM (#2189312) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Bobert Caution: True Bobert story to follow... Bobert's Fireworks Story Well, where I buy the "good stuff" at Phanton Fireworks in Pennsylvania they give me a big ol' assortment that usually has about a dozen or so 19 shoters but the box also has lots of lady-fingers and bottle rockets which ain't as sexy so they just get thrown into "The Box"... "The Box" wasn't 'sposed to be a firework box at all... It was a Castrol oil box which is purdy sturdy and about 20X14X12 inches in demensions... So it was like about 10 years ago and it was New Year's Eve... My son Will-to-me-Ben-to-you (don't ask) and I had allready shot up all the good stuff and all that was left was "The Box" filled almost to tyhe top with thousands of ladyfingers and hundreds of bottle rockets and we were still in mood for a little more noise so we were firing bottle rockets from our hands at various targets in back yard that we could make out it the dark... The two of us were standing on the deck behind the house and "The Box" was on on a metal porch chair so we didn't have to bend down to grab yet another bundle of bottle rockets... Yeah, lookin' back I will be the first to admit that this did not fall in the "Safe Use" category but, what the heck... NO guts, no glory... So here we were just havin' a good ol' New Year's when a sprk from one of the bottle rockets found "The Box" and we're both lookin' down at what is surely about to happen and the same thought came to each of us about the same split second and that was getting the heck thru the slidin' as fast as possible, get the sumabich closed and be prepared to do battle with any fires after the smoke cleared... Problem is that we didn't have time to figure who would go thru the door first... Now a good dad would certainly see to it that the son would go first but I never made any claims to be a good dad... GHeck, that thought never made it into my thinkin'... So here we both hit the slider at the very same time... I reckon we were lucky to not break the sumabich down in our fight to get thru it... Meanwhile, "The Box" was blowin' the heck up and bottle rockets were going every which way and thousands of lady fingers were poppin' all over thew deck while we fought our way (and each other) thru the sliding door and safely got it shut... Well, "The Box" musta partied fir a good 3 or 4 minutes and it seems that the entire deck was inflamed with bricks of firecrakers... When the smoke cleared we could see that we hadn't caught the woods or the house on fire but had made one heck of a mess on the deck but that was about it... So I looked at Will-to-me-Ben-to-you (don't ask) and he looked back at me and for the second time in 5 minutes the exact same thoughts crossed both our feeble minds as we let out a similtanious... ... "That was cool".... Yeah, I know that most dads think back on stuff like good report cars or the touchdown the kid scored to win the championship game but I reckon I ain't in the most dad's column as this is one of my finest memories of being with my son... Sniff... Think I'll go out and shoot off some fireworks... Bobert |
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08 Nov 07 - 06:21 PM (#2189350) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Bill D Yep..."it's cool" if no damage is done. But it sure don't make much of a story if the house is set on fire, or someone gets a wild bottle rocket in the eye. I have shot off a few in my time.....we used to get some brought from Oklahoma where they were legal to Kansas, where they weren't. Blew cans sky-high...etc. I was very careful and never came close to getting hurt...but stories in the local paper every year about the idiots who have NO sense have convinced me never to try again, and to hope that 'professional' displays are all that I am ever near. |
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08 Nov 07 - 06:28 PM (#2189352) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Nickhere "There's no sense outlawing everything that certain people misuse...you'd end up having to outlaw everything!!! I'm seious. Every fecking thing imaginable would have to be outlawed." Exactly! And then you have a situation where a few irresponsible people wield inordinate power in society, because, thanks to the misbehaviour of a few, things are banned for everyone in acts of what are basically, collective punishment. |
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08 Nov 07 - 06:30 PM (#2189357) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Little Hawk Har! Har! Great story, Bobert. That is the wacky side of life that I love, and there would, in fact, BE almost no good stories to tell without it. No Mark Twain books. No jokes. No suspense. No nothin'. |
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08 Nov 07 - 06:35 PM (#2189359) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Bobert Of all people, I knew you would like it, LH... I believe there might be a "Little Hawk's Fireworks Story" in ya, as well.... |
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08 Nov 07 - 06:42 PM (#2189360) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Little Hawk Well, I remember blowing up a lot of toy soldiers outdoors and blowing up dirt bunkers that I built to put them in...that sort of thing. That's fairly much it, except the time my friend and I blew up the wasp's nest inside the groundhog hole on the steep bankside of the little creek that ran through the forest nearby. One of the damn things had come out and stung me when we were playing in the creek bed, so we came back after dark with cherry bombs and blew the little monsters to hell. It worked great too...killed every last one of them. I checked the next day, and they were kaput. |
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08 Nov 07 - 07:22 PM (#2189379) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: catspaw49 Ya' know Bobertz, me, you, and Hawk, need to get together and blow some stuff up. I have a hundred tales I won't tell here but the three of us are definitely brothers. Back about '83 or '84 I was living in Tennessee where they are legal and my friend Alan and I were both making more money than either of us had ever made so we pissed away almost $1500. for the 4th of July. We spent half the day organizing what to shoot and when and it took almost 2 hours to go through it all.......***sigh***.....Geeziz it was GLORIOUS!!! We had 18 tubes in the ground for bottle rockets of any size and for a finale, we lit a row of 7 gigantic Dago bombs and sent up 36 large bottle rockets@2/tube. We were so busy lighting the stuff we didn't get to see as much as we liked but our friends and neighbors hanging around said it was terrific! Of course some folks should never play with fireworks. There are about a zillion videos on YouTube with assorted idiots of both sexes launching bottle rockets out of the butts. I ain't gonna' link one. If you want to watch they're easy to find!...........LOL Spaw |
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08 Nov 07 - 08:07 PM (#2189410) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Bobert Well, gol danged, Spawzer.... Even the Reg Boyz an' by6 couzin Rufus know not to stick nuthin' up their butts and then light 'um... Might of fact, I belive that question has been added to the Wes Ginny I.Q. test... But yeah, lets get together and blow some sh*t the heck up... And, hey, we're beyond plastic toy soldiers... I was kinda thinkin' like my Couzin Rufus's '78 Chevette then got to thinkin' seriously what we could blow up with $1500 of the good stuff from Phantom and accordin' to the Wes Ginny Slide Rule we could prolbably blow the crap outta Rhode Island... Whaddayathink??? LH??? You in??? Sell a few more steering wheels 'er whatever it is that you sell... Heck, I'd pawn my Martin to blow up Rhode Island... Man, they'd be talklin' 'bout us fir years... Hey, maybe I can get my son, Will-to-me-Ben-to-you (don't ask) to chip in a few bucks... He's a good fuse-man... It's all about being able to bend over and get back up quickly without passin' out... Very important in fuse-man-land... I don't see any of us still possessing them skills... Okay, you two might go a few rounds but this ol' hillbilly be passed out and not good fir fir nuthin' afetr lightin' 'bout two 'er three... $1500, Spawzer??? That's a lot of the good stuff, man... A lot... B~ |
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09 Nov 07 - 04:08 AM (#2189558) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: ard mhacha Nickhere don`t underestimate the Loyalist intelligence, they likely believed he was doing a good job. |
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09 Nov 07 - 08:57 AM (#2189740) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Old Nick Well there you have it - Bobert's shown me the way forward. We need a new law that simply says "don't sell fireworks to hillbillies and the world will be a safer place". And what does "Even the Reg Boyz an' by6 couzin Rufus" mean anyway? Good night John-Boy, good night Jim-Bob, good night Mary-Ellen....................... |
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09 Nov 07 - 09:35 AM (#2189764) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Stu "and on behalf of all you people who get upset about this that and the other fecking thing because a few immature people misuse it" Spoken like someone who has never had to suffer the curse of anti-social behaviour for years on end, right outside your own front door - it ended up making me ill. You've no idea how these bastards grind you down eventually - as they grow they're replaced by the more sportswear-clad clones with the same dismal IQ and degenerate parents. Alcohol, fireworks and fuck knows what else should be far more tightly controlled until people can bring up there kids with a sense of responsibility. Bollocks to your fireworks - ban them for general sale now and let those that suffer at the hands of this plague have some relief. Otherwise you go and put yourself in the frontline and see how much fun it is living with this nightmare nigh after night after night (one more thing - the police don't give damn about the suffering of ordinary people from anti-social behaviour). |
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09 Nov 07 - 11:16 AM (#2189854) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Little Hawk Humph! You sound like one of them prissy city slickers to me, Stigweard. Us country folks hereabouts don't worry our haids about stuff like that because we have a lot of empty space around us, so if'n some consarned yahoo starts makin' a big racket we jest hike over the hill and find a quiet spot of our own in the shade of the juniper trees, suck back on a jug of moonshine and contemplate the beauty of nature fer a bit. And here's the thing I've always noticed. The one MAKIN' the racket enjoys it! The one not makin' the racket doesn't, unlest he is a good friend of the one makin' the racket. We-all LOVE to blow things up and make one hell of a racket as long as it is OUR idea...you git what I'm sayin'? If'n it is the other feller's idea...well...it depends on how much we like the other feller and whether or not we is tryin' to git some shut-eye or not. What you need to do is MAKE some noise of yer own, Stigweard. Let it be YOUR idea to make a hell of a lot of noise, and you will find out jest how much fun it is to let off a rip-roarin' bunch of fireworks. Blow them other suckers right off the street with yer own fireworks show. That is the best way to fight back, and it's fun! Bobert, Spaw, I'm with ya, boys! Let's get together next July 4rth, go down to Nashville, buy a shitload of the best fireworks money can buy, and blow the whole danged Grand Old Opry right off its foundations. Yessiree. Great fun. ;-D |
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09 Nov 07 - 12:42 PM (#2189916) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Stu "Blow them other suckers right off the street with yer own fireworks show. That is the best way to fight back, and it's fun!" Jaysus - these people have their finger on the button too . . . This is why you've got to have a sneaking admiration for Americans - it takes determination and grit to be so consistently dedicated to explosions, fire and destruction to the point it becomes their stock answer to everything. I hear you mad bastards are getting some new nukes? Pass the tin hat . . . |
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09 Nov 07 - 12:47 PM (#2189923) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Little Hawk Heh! Snort! Chuckle! Yep, it's quite somethin' living right next door to a society whose basic natural instinct is to blow things up "read good". Always some excitement lurking just around the corner... |
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09 Nov 07 - 01:09 PM (#2189950) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Little Hawk that was supposed to read: "real good" Blow things up REAL good! That is the American Way, and it has been ever since 1775. |
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09 Nov 07 - 08:05 PM (#2190258) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Bobert Well, gol danged right, Hawkster... And right after we blow the Grand ol' Opree up let's take what we left over to stigs-wierd's niehborhood an' show his neighbors how its really done... Okay, maybe July 4th wouldn't go over too good over there but what the heck... If they can't take a joke??? BTW, why the Grand ol' Opree??? Why not a certain ranch house in Crawford, Texas... Man, wouldn't that be fun??? Then one certain individual, upon retiring, might have to live in an ol' Airsteam.... No, better yet... Nevermind... The Grand ol' Opree works fir me... Plus, I know of a real quiet spot about 40 miles west of Nashville in Buck Snort where ya' can rent a motel room fir less than 20 bucks right next to the 24/7 Quick Stop that has the coldest beer in the state of Tennessee... If it gets better than that then I'd like for someone to explain how... B~ |
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09 Nov 07 - 08:24 PM (#2190270) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Little Hawk Sounds like Hillbilly Heaven, Bobert! Ah kin hardly wait! |
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10 Nov 07 - 05:54 AM (#2190393) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Stu I'm going for a lie down in a cool dark room. |
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10 Nov 07 - 06:20 AM (#2190396) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: catspaw49 ..............flick*****flick.....................pssssssssssssssssssssss.. KA-BOOM!!!!.................heheheheheheheheehhe............Spaw |
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10 Nov 07 - 03:09 PM (#2190642) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Backwoodsman Why don't those brain-dead morons get bored? How many f***ing bangs can one person listen to before they're bored shitless? No more than two, for anyone with more than one functioning brain-cell, surely! |
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10 Nov 07 - 05:10 PM (#2190718) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Bobert Two, my hillbilly butt... Takes 'bout a couple three dozen jus' to get in the mood for the good stuff... Hey, maybe you think we're talkin' 'bout lightin' one cherry bomb after another after another... That's okay fun but whn we're talkuin' about the good stuff it's the kinda stuff that folks drive couple hours in traffic and wait for hours to see... And hear... The good stuff does a lot more than go "boom" and goes "boom" and then lights up the sky... What's wrong with that, woodsman??? Well, don't hurt yer head on this question 'casue I'm gonna tell you what's wrong with that... ...Absolutley nothin, that's what's wrong with it... Hey, there's a time fir bein' back in the woods and a time for firworks... I enjoy both o' um tho all I gotta do is walk 'bout 400 feet from here and I'm in the Shenandoah National Park which is behind my farm... Yeah, that's okay, too when ya need to be in the woods but this thread ain't 'bout quiet walks in the woods... It's about fireworks so... ...KABOOM!!! B~ |
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10 Nov 07 - 05:36 PM (#2190737) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Ebbie A Norwegian friend of mine said that he doesn't understand Americans. In Juneau, on the 4th of July, a city barge travels out into the center of the channel between the mainland and Douglas Island and one by one the firemen set off about a half hour of fireworks, lighting up the night sky and the ocean alike. My friend says, Townspeople see a rocket go up, say Ah!, watch the next one go up and again say Ah! and repeat until the fireworks are gone and the barge is empty. Why don't they, he asks, set everything up to all blow at once? All the people would go AH!!!!!!!! and then everyone could go home. |
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10 Nov 07 - 05:54 PM (#2190754) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Little Hawk He might just as well ask why people don't get sex over in about 3 quick strokes (like Spaw usually does...) or why they don't eat a delicious meal in ONE GIANT GULP and SWALLOW! Think of all the valuable TIME they could save! Just think! Geez... Even Shane is smart enough to figure out stuff like this, so what the heck is wrong with your Norwegian friend? ;-) |
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10 Nov 07 - 11:27 PM (#2190921) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Ebbie He just might have been tweaking my leg, Little Hawk. |
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11 Nov 07 - 03:26 AM (#2190993) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Liz the Squeak I have to admit, the firework display at Legland Windsor this year was something special. It was a still, reasonably warm night for November, after a spanky sunny autumn day, and the conditions were perfect. All the lights in the park were switched off so the only glow in the sky came from Heathrow Airport some miles away across the valley. It was one of those evenings where the music and the fireworks fitted perfectly. We could have been watching one of those weird sound graphs that Disney used in the original 'Fantasia' or from Windows Media visualisations. OK, so the story was lame (Witches ball, bad witch wants to win and bewitches the orchestra, good witch knocks 'em dead with talent) but the timing of the music and the fireworks was perfect. Usually, there's a split second delay, but that evening conditions were perfect and they were spot on. And do you know... out of a crowd of several thousands - there was not a single 'oooh' or 'aaah' until the end. OK, there were a few 'wow's but it was that kind of display! LTS |
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11 Nov 07 - 10:20 AM (#2191145) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Backwoodsman Yep Bobert, emphasis on the SINGLE functioning brain cell. Thanks for proving my point fella! :-) Ebbie, your display sounds great, I'd love to see it. BUT - when you've had dickheads roaming the streets of your town every night for the past three weeks, setting off huge fireworks from roughly 4.30 pm until 1 am, you get a bit pissed off, I can assure you. I reckon even ole Bobert would tire of it a little! :-) |
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11 Nov 07 - 11:21 AM (#2191193) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Bobert Well, gol danged, woodsy, at least I got one firin'... LOL... But Norweigan reminds me of yet another "Bobert Story": "Yet Another Bobert Story" Back when I lived in Wes Ginny in a mountain community there was a big lake and a nice club house and every 4th of July the local fire fepartment would set off some real nice fireworks... Like Liz was describing, they would be set off after an afternoon and evening of picnicing and music and kids of all ages splashing in the club pool... As per any event in a Wes Ginny mountain community that involves partying there were a number of folks who wouldn't make the designated driver's list, if you know what I mean, and on this given 4th of July we just happened to have such a feller about 20 feet from us... But nevermind him, for now... So 'bout 9:00 came and it was getting toward dark and time for the big event... Now usually, like the display that Ebbie was talkin' about in Alaskaburg the display usually lasted about a half and hour or so... Well, the fire dapartment had set up all their stuff over on a point on the deep side of the lake and had the van filled with the firworks to be loaded into tubes and lit and a few fire trucks scattered around the point, as well... "bout 5 minutes into the display one of the mortors misfired and went right into the back of the van filled with fireworks waitin' their turn... Now, folks, this ain't a good thing to happen... It's kinda like my last firework story 'cept alot worser... Within' a few swconds the point became a war zone... It was so lit up you could see folks running and diving into the lake... It took about 30 seconds for everything to blow the heck up and then this eerie silence... The only thing left that could be seen was the burning van sittin' in the middle of the point... Everyone was horrified and silent 'cept... ...you guessed it... Mr. Drunk who was still sitting their on his blanket who swt down his Budwieser, becane to clap and yelled accross the late "Far, fu*kin' out, man, far fu*kin' out..." Well, luckily there were just a few burn and bruises to the folks from the fire department... One of my neigbors who was the fire marshall got hit in the side of the face by a firework but he healed up okay... Is there a mopral to this story??? Well, not really... Stuff does happen and thankfully no one was seriously injured, however, as per usual the incident proved yet again that Budweiser never made... ...Bud wiser... The End, Part 2 B~ |
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11 Nov 07 - 11:30 AM (#2191202) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Little Hawk Great story, Bobert. Another classic piece of smalltown Americana. It's plain that a lot of the people who don't like "fireworks" are primarily upset about the ones that go "BANG!" and "BOOM!" But when I think of "fireworks", what comes to my mind is the beautiful visual displays of bright colours in the night sky. The banging and booming is strictly secondary. It all depends what one is inclined to focus on, you see. Now if you're inside your apartment watching television behind closed doors and the locals are annoying you by setting off loud explosions out in the street, well, I can understand why it annoys you. But if you have deliberately gone down to the lakeside to watch a beautiful civic display of fireworks paint the night sky in brilliant colours, then you are going to LIKE what you are seeing, correct? And that explains the difference in viewpoints here about as well as needs be done, I think. |
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11 Nov 07 - 02:20 PM (#2191322) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: ard mhacha You are lucky in the US all of your vandals are in Iraq. |
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11 Nov 07 - 02:58 PM (#2191368) Subject: RE: BS: Fireworks! Hate them! From: Little Hawk Yes, business is good over there... |