Page 14 | The fireworks tonight

annabel85 · 2020-11-05T17:03:46+00:00

AIBU or are you probably just an anarchist or an arsehole to be setting off fireworks and firecrackers during a lockdown, when official displays are banned? There's no excuse to be frightening animals either tonight. Don't be a dickhead.

crosstalk · 07/11/2020 13:56

Spent my third night in a row trying to stop my dog from barking and racing round the house (new home, few curtains up, no tv but radio). Dog does not react well to tranquilisers - she ended up one year being given so many as fireworks one day (out of many) went from 5pm-12pm - she was still distressed but couldn't move. Looking forward to tonight. Not.

WutheringTights · 07/11/2020 14:05

The insistence on official displays only makes me laugh as it's just nimbyism. Yeah, they're great for you because no fireworks (lasting a few minutes) within your earshot. But official displays are bigger, louder and go on for longer so they're much much worse for people and animals living nearby.

This is typical Mumsnet echo chamber stuff. Most people love a few fireworks on bonfire night. If that wasn't the case then there wouldn't be so many displays and so many on sale.

RichardMarxisinnocent · 07/11/2020 17:38

The insistence on official displays only makes me laugh as it's just nimbyism. Yeah, they're great for you because no fireworks (lasting a few minutes) within your earshot. But official displays are bigger, louder and go on for longer so they're much much worse for people and animals living nearby
I don't know where you live, but where I am back garden fireworks don't just last a few minutes, they are non stop for hours for several evenings in a row. I have never come across an official display which goes on for 5 or 6 hours.

InFiveMins · 07/11/2020 17:50

I hate fireworks and long for the day they are banned. I have seen someone become permanently disfigured by them. They distress animals. I simply cannot think of one 'nice' thing about them - I was bored of them by the age of six and have never been interested in them since.

lovepickledlimes · 07/11/2020 17:56

@WutheringTights yes one night for 10 minutes. It is a lot easier to deal with then 2-3 weeks of it where is can go off at any time in the night with no warning

Springersrock · 07/11/2020 19:03

The insistence on official displays only makes me laugh as it's just nimbyism. Yeah, they're great for you because no fireworks (lasting a few minutes) within your earshot. But official displays are bigger, louder and go on for longer so they're much much worse for people and animals living nearby.

Rubbish.

The recreation ground where my town’s official display is held, is at the end of my garden.

Half an hour of fireworks, however loud, that is well advertised and I know about, is a lot easier to deal with than every night, randomly, for several hours for the last 2 weeks.

tellmewhentheLangshiplandscoz · 07/11/2020 20:27

So next door have just had their own back yard display ... how thick do you have to be to think letting off explosives in a garden the size of a postage stamp surrounded by other gardens with wood roofed sheds and lawns vi erect in dry leaves, is a good idea?!

Makes it easy to spot the numptys I suppose.

JustOneMoreStep · 07/11/2020 22:18

I wonder how many people citing 'children with disabilities/people with PTSD' actually have the first idea about those things.

My brother is severely mentally handicapped and has autism and LOVES fireworks. Its one of the few things in life he really obviously enjoys. He attended a special needs school who had a firework display each year because so many of their students enjoyed them but couldn't cope with a traditional organised display due to the unfamiliar location and lots and lots of unknown people. It IS true that some people with SEND are sound sensitive, in the same way as some people without SEND are sound sensitive. You sound ridiculous and present as being uneducated when spouting 'think of all the children with autism'.

PTSD is a similar concept, SOME people with PTSD are triggered by fireworks, many are not. In fact overwhelmingly on the PTSD forums I frequent (military based one) the feeling is that it is their issue and they do not want other to suffer not being able to do normal activities as a result of their illness. I read one quite persuasive post which said that the individual found it insulting that fireworks should be banned in 'his name's a veteran with PTSD. He felt he went to war to serve his country so that we 'British people' could retain our rights, freedoms and enjoyment of life. I was surprised by how many others agreed with him.

For me personally, fireworks aren't a trigger, but men and the smell of fish and chips are. Should I campaign to have every person with a penis banned from public spaces and close down all the chip shops? Of course that would be ridiculous - but no more ridiculous that claiming the necessity to ban fireworks for ALL the people with Autism/SEND/PTSD

lovepickledlimes · 07/11/2020 22:24

@JustOneMoreStep a outright ban yes would be unrealistic but surely some limitations that are not there just yet are sensible. Like only the night of the event, only allow a certain noise level, and narrow the time you are allowed to set them off even more

LadyMacbethWasMisunderstood · 07/11/2020 22:35

I am definitely not an anarchist. And I don’t identify with being an arsehole.

Every year that I can remember I have had a few fireworks on our own land on bonfire night. It has also marked my birthday. Fireworks are one of my earliest memories. Since having my own children my DH and I have done fireworks for them. 3 years ago bonfire night was the day my DD1 came home from a long stay in hospital, having nearly died. We had fireworks then. Other than that night 3 years ago, and this one, we have always shared the night with a few other close friends and family members.

But we still had some this year (just the 5 of us). After sausage and mash and baked apples. We know what we are doing. We have many pets. Neither our pets, nor our nearest neighbours’ pets are distressed (I know, I’ve asked). Truly, it felt more important than ever to do something this year that felt like normality.

LadyMacbethWasMisunderstood · 07/11/2020 22:48

It amuses me that on this thread those of us who like fireworks have been called “classless” (which I took to mean “lacking in class”) and on another thread those who call their parents “mummy and Daddy” are deemed “posh”. I love fireworks. Always have. Probably always will. I call my parents “mummy and daddy”. Not likely to change that at my age either. All these generalisations about what type of people do certain things or like certain things are really (quite ridiculous and) plainly not very accurate.

I’m just an ordinary, middle aged, working mother; not an anarchist, not an arsehole (I’m really not), not posh, no pretentious. Just a woman with likes and dislikes. Not someone from a mould.