Preparations are well under way for the 11th of July bonfires. All over Belfast (well, all over the unionist areas), there are great piles of pallets & old furniture waiting to be set ablaze on the 11th night. A tradition I guess, but a bit of an eyesore.In the background you can see one of many murals commemorating George Best (he grew up in the Cregagh Estate).
3 comments:
Seems very close to the tree. It will get scorched I am betting.
I hope you have a nice weekend.
Brookville Daily Photo
unfortunately, Abe, the idiots don't give a damn about trees nor houses. The Fire Service have probably their busiest night on 11th July because communities are known to light their bonfires too close to houses and/or shops. Regrettably too, the fire service tends to come in for a lot of abuse (physical and verbal) while trying to protect property and possibly lives too. Although it is a tradition (and a tradition I participated in as a child) it is time it was stamped out or revamped. In the last few years bonfires have just got bigger and more dangerous but the loyalist community think that it is their god-given right to continue with this sort of lunacy. If they at least were sensible about the whole damn thing and kept the fires to a more manageable size then perhaps it would be OK. Sadly too, like the twelfth celebrations, it has now become a show of strength and, if anybody tries to do anything about it, the loyalists simply dig their heels in. Garvaghy Road being a case in point. Oh for the good old days, eh? When life was so much simpler.
I agree with you Dr A, though I'm not sure if the good old days were as simple as we think. I remember going along to bonfires as a child in the 70s, and it was fun and enjoyable, but then we all watched 'Love thy neighbour' and 'mind your language' and thought they were fun too.... I guess most of us have come a long way in the last few years, its just a matter of time for the extremists to catch up..? (My solution would be to harness all that musical talent and turn the orange bands into mariachi bands - surely everyone would just have to love that?)
Post a Comment