It’s funny- when I started thinking about the modifications to the chivalric code, it felt like it meant stepping away from acts of confrontation when it comes to accountability.
After a few holy chao is this really a conversation type conversations on the tradition of fireworks getting waaaaay out of hand over the past week or so, I’ve realized that’s not actually the case. You can do this-
To live taking into account the happiness of others, and endeavoring to add to it
and this-
To fight for the welfare of all
Without wantonly giving offense.
And it’s not even really that hard, once you keep the code in mind. In a lot of conversations about the rights of celebrating the 4th the traditional way, all that was needed was to point out that one person’s fun should end when another’s safety or peace of mind was harmed.
It’s true, it’s necessary to be stated, and if you’re offended by that- well, you probably needed to be offended. And then, through all of the dodges, denials, excuses, et cetera (and boy was there a LOT of et cetera), you don’t have to do anything but restate the central point. To set off illegal fireworks in the middle of the city at any damn hour you choose is thoughtless, unkind, and harms others. Period, end of list.
Yeah, I got called Scrooge and liberal (like it’s a dirty word) and too old/too young/too stupid to understand why it was so important to blow shit up, but no one could tell me I was wrong.
And maybe, just maybe, the folks that were reading but doing so quietly realized that maybe next year, they should drive their happy asses out to an uninhabited part of the mesa if they want to go shoot that stuff off.
While I feel good about expressing my opinion firmly, what I don’t feel good about is the realization that so many people don’t seem to have a single care for the harm they cause because they want to do something. They minimize it (Oh, it’s not that bad. It’s only for an hour. That’s the way we’ve always done it. But the kids really enjoy it!) and carry right on with whatever not great plan they had. I know that sounds simplistic and, in a way, naive and stupid. But there’s a part of me that still thinks if you say, “Hey please stop smacking me in the head, it hurts” that the barebones response is to stop the smacking. One step up would be to apologize for the smacking, with the best response being to apologize AND learn from it that smacking people in the head is not a good thing to do AND try to guard against accidental smackage.
I know, I’m a dreamer, but you know? I’m not the only one.
Curiouser and Curiouser 