Ancient Chinese people thought that lighting loud firecrackers and fireworks would scare away the “nian”, the mythical monster on the eve of Chinese New Year (note: only on the eve, so the fable goes). That’s what the ancient people thought.
But don’t we know better now?
Looks like we just don’t.
And the Chinese people still persist and insist on lighting up fireworks in this modern day and age.
As far back as 2017, 444 cities in China had already banned fireworks because of the injuries it could cause to humans and the pollution to the environment and that’s noise and chemical pollution. I’d say that’s a good enough reason.
The “environment” includes animals, especially birds, bees and many other mammals.
But traditions die hard and humans would sometimes vehemently protest and insist on maintaining traditional and cultural practices despite being told that their practices are harmful to others. They just don’t care. Somehow, maintaining traditions, culture and religion (not in this case as fireworks have absolutely nothing to do with any religion, so I’m just saying in general here) is so important that it bypasses their conscience and common sense.
This is where animals are so much “better” than humans. They lead a much simpler life – they just need to survive and that would be enough. Why complicate life so much and end up destroying the only earth we have with practices that are not a necessity to life?
As expected, my plea in my neighbourhood chat group with the above message and another message pleading for compassion did not go down well with many of the neighbours. There was backlash.
But then again, when you are speaking up for animals, there will always be backlash. It will always be an uphill battle. I’m used to it. But someone has to speak up for the animals. If not us, then who?
And this is despite the fact that I had listed the harm it does to human babies as well. Fireworks at 120dB and above can cause permanent hearing loss in infants. I know it’s hard to get the majority humans to care about animals, especially small animals like birds and bees, but it isn’t only about harming animals, it is also about harming human infants.
I accept that you don’t care about animals, but you also don’t care about the young of your own species??
Take a look at this news from JB: https://worldofbuzz.com/it-disturbs-my-kid-sporean-neighbour-in-jb-scolds-residents-for-playing-fireworks-on-cny-night/
They just don’t care. Somehow maintaining traditional and cultural practices supersedes all common decency.
What a shame.
Last night, the perpetrators in my neighbourhood lit up after 11pm but before 12 midnight. They know they have the law on their side. So the machine-gun firecrackers shattered the silence of the night, and yes, it woke my husband up until he couldn’t go back to sleep and we ended up watching TV until 3am.
In my plea to them, I wasn’t talking about disturbing any human, I was talking on a much deeper level, that earth-shattering deafening noise can cause permanent hearing loss in infants and a host of other problems including deaths in small animals.
My friend’s pet dog, Chelsea, escaped during the 2015 Deepavali fireworks and I found Chelsea in our neighbourhood about 10 days later, whining, pining for home. Luckily I recognised her because Chelsea was my rescue. How did she wander so far until she landed in my neighbourhood, I will never know.
Chelsea’s second rescue: https://animalcare.my/2015/11/21/of-fireworks-chelsea-and-her-2nd-rescue/
I feel really sad wondering how many more pets have been lost unnecessarily because of fireworks.
The humans who care about animals are always a minority. The majority thinks the whole earth belongs only to them and only humans have the right to live and thrive in it. And for some humans, only certain humans of a particular race or skin colour have that right. This is how bigoted humans have become. With such selfishness, eventually, they might just destroy their own species. And when that happens, the animals and the Earth will thrive again!
