Call for 8th May VE Day Street Parties - jolly fun or recipe for disaster?

[DishingOutDone]

We had a street party a couple of weeks ago and social distancing lasted all of 5 minutes. By 6pm everyone was off their faces and all over each other, visitors were invited over, lots of dancing together and sharing food. The main theme was that our street knew better than anyone else and this virus thing was all a load of old rubbish, we'd beat it, not scared etc etc. The next day anyone who didn't take part was called out on facebook.

Since then I've seen reports of police having to break up street parties, alongside cheerful news items saying how amazing they are and what great guys the organisers must be, community spirit etc. So which is it? Vote YANBU to agree that these events are irresponsible and rarely conducted with everyone simply sitting or standing happily in their own garden or drive so should be discouraged - or YABU to say I am a miserable cow trying to upset the neighbours (as declared on said facebook page!!)?

Do not mix with anyone from a different household.
What is difficult to understand about that?

For VE day I shall put a big flag in my window - but stay indoors as requested.

If your neighbours are so patriotic maybe they might consider getting behind the national effort during a genuine existential crisis.
Their cringy "street party" is equivilant to holding a fireworks display during the blackout. Utter cretins.

I think a street party would've been on the news.

We’re having one, sort of - not like you describe though - there’s a leaflet going round doors and on social media. To stay in your front or back garden, and not exit the boundary, all the front gardens are tens of metres apart and mainly a lot more, with a picnic and a singalong. It sounds fantastic to me. Obviously not if your neighbours cant be trusted to stay in their gardens and not turn in to drunken yobs etc.

On my Nextdoor neighbourhood group someone has suggested decorating our houses and holding a party in our front gardens. It may work if it's just cups of tea but if the booze starts flowing I can see it being not such a good idea

Good luck to my neighbours naming and shaming me , they don’t even know my name !

Oh goodness it’s getting worse! We’ve been emailed with a request to contribute old clothes in red, white, or blue, so neighbour across the way can cut them up to make bunting. I know I sound like a misery guts, but i so don’t want to be organised into having fun, and especially when it involves breaking the spirit, if not the letter of the law. For now I’m sitting on my hands for fear of offending anyone, but goodness knows what I’ll do if they follow up with a telephone call.

Can we organise an air raid there for some real authenticity.

THE WARS NOT COMING BACK PEOPLE AND YOU HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH IT.

Its all gone quiet in our street so far, but there's still time.

Good plan @user1471565182. Come to think of it, the only person in the road that I’m aware is ex-army is strangely silent about the plans. Might experience in the Gulf or Falklands or whatever make him aware that this isn’t a game?

A bit off topic but does anyone else find the idea of general celebrations for VE Day depressing? For me it feels part of the mentality that thinks Brexit is a great idea, overestimates Britain’s place in the world and ability to cope alone, and refuses to accept the world has changed quite a lot since the Second World War. It was a long time ago!

I think the idea was commemoration rather than celebration, but people don't seem to take it that way.

Our local police was saying they'd spoken to a few people in our town who wanted to organise street parties when lockdown is eased. not envy. I hate forced jollity and socialising. Hopefully I'll be able to escape if our street decides to organise one.

Oh my goodness, are people really thinking of celebrating the extreme sacrifice of people who helped end the war by putting the lives of the remaining WW2 generation at risk of death by coronavirus?

Street parties are meant to be all about the neighbours getting together. Not shouting at each other from their gates/doorsteps along the whole length - like a noisy game of giant Chinese whispers!

It's meant to be a bout drinking tea whilst watching children of different ages, including 'too cool' teens rediscover the joys of trad party and playground games. Then the pimms or the beer making an appearance, and it getting a little rowdier and everyone dances with just about everyone else on the street.

Love the phrase Virus Exchange, for that is what VE would mean thus year.

If anyone in government is worried that there would be lots of such parties, then perhaps they should ask Capt Tom to make a statement asking people not to piss away everything which has been done for them

There is literally no chance of the lock down being lifted sufficiently to have a street party!

If they lift the lockdown early may, it will be done gradually. Hard to see why a street party would be a priority at that point.

Well the neighbours now have a sound system ordered in, as well as bunting. AIBU to invent a new profession that requires me to remain indoors all of next Friday?

I don't think my street is the kind of place where people would celebrate it. I live on my own. If I did have a party it would be a sad little party for one. I don't have a front garden either, just gravel.

I believe one of the contributory factors (only a small one) in the spread of the 19l8/9 pandemic was the Victory Celebrations in November 1918.

However, people did have a reason to celebrate in November 1918 and May 1945. This commemoration is another distraction. I know my opinion may be unpopular, but I really think it is time this country moved on from its obsession with The War.

Are other Allied European countries doing similar? Except the Dutch, I know they have some sort of commemoration around this time.

@puffinandkoala I'm the same. I'm not a 'Dementor', I'm just shy and socially awkward and I don't know many people in my street. I know my neighbours and the people in my building to say hi to, but we're not exactly friends.

Why not just save it until VJ Day, when WW2 was actually over.

I kind of trust my neighbours to behave re distancing: what I am worried about is that it will serve to encourage the kind of British exceptionalism narrative that has already led to some disastrous decisions concerning the pandemic. Look we defeated the Germans, we're special, we can overcome the pandemic just by being us. As Im2Sexy said, time to move on from that obsession with the war.

Also worried because it is clear the Telegraph are now pushing not even an end to lockdown but an end to the 2 metre rule. So there are people out there who have an interest in us not working on infection control or a belief that, for some unknown reason, we don't need to work on infection control.

Our street are doing a sit in your front gardens and have a cup of tea sort of thing.

I don't see people mixing - people cross the street to avoid each other at the moment.

I think it's nice if people can have a celebration while sitting in their own front garden. We've never had an actual street party here so I don't expect it to get out of hand with drink etc

I don't have a front garden, just a patch of gravel where the bins are. I guess I could just...sit on the gravel or something.