To think Chinese lanterns are just litter??

[sheas]

Maybe it's just me but what is the difference between sending up a Chinese lantern and throwing paper out of a car window? I have just been out for a walk and saw a poor little lamb caught up in one of these infernal things that had landed in their field.I am sure it is great fun to let one of these things go but not if it going to harm wildlife surely???

They can start fires too.I think they look pretty but are a bad idea.

Yes they look like flares on the coast. False alarms have trebled in the last three years or some such figure.
< guiltyly remebers New Years eve and friends 40th birthday >
Won't do it again.

I thought they had bamboo in them not wire.

sheas did you untangle the lamb or let someone know?

I'm not a fan of these or helium ballons either.We get loads caught in our hedges and in the fields.They are crappy rubbish as far as I am concerned.

Yes they should be banned,I have heard lots of reports of wildlife getting caught up in the wires,and people naturally don't think of this when they buy them.You are just littering the countryside with wire.Horrible.So YANBU. Did you free the lamb?

i thought they totally burnt up, feel very guilty about having them at new year now

one round here was reported as a ufo in the local paper

It's littering. Should be fined.

Sorry, should have also mentioned that yes, I untangled the lamb and got headbutted by its Mum for my troubles !!! It had this really sharp wire contraption in it

sheas that is so sad re the lamb, it's abit like when you see the plastic six pack holders scattered around, there is so much wildlife get stuck in those

YANBU

hmmm I was sent one, and when I read the instructions it said not to release them if you live within x number of miles of an airport... which we do... planes fly over us. So can't use it.

BUT and here's the annoying part, the local gimicky type shop sells them... WHY???????? They cannot be used anywhere near here!!! (I think it is something like 30miles of an international type airport).

AND we live nr heathland... that caught fire 5ish yrs ago so badly houses were evacuated and peoples fences caught fire!! (Ok, doesn't sound that bad, but pretty scary for those involved... we just heard all the sirens, and there were lots!, oh and smelt the is someone having a bonfire...)

Throughout 'wedding season' last year our local paper featured regular front page news stories about Ufo's and sightings of aliens

I am appalled to read that they cause harm to wildlife as well as a litter problem

I propose a MN campaign to ban them!

Yes,lets get them banned,the kind of people who buy them just want something lovely,and I imagine have no idea about the dangers.No-one would want to celebrate their wedding with wildlife carnage,countryside fires etc surely? there must be an alternative.