The Senseless Waste Created by Pointless Festivals.

Now I wasn't really sure if this should be in this forum or maybe the social issues forum in Above Politics.

Hmmm Social and Spiritual... Oh well it's here now!

Festivals the senseless waste of oh so many things.

I am going to start with Halloween. I sit here typing this a mere 30 minutes away from the said festival and that and the Christmas decorations that I saw being put up in the shopping mall just the other day really got me thinking.

The candy - Extra special packaging for the season, special plastic buckets to put it in or plastic bags with pumpkins printed on to put it in first before you give it out. Then there is the fact that it is food... How many people are there in this world that will be going hungry tonight.

The Pumpkins - Again a food resource issue. I don't know how many pumpkin related fire happen each year, but I'll bet there's a few.

The costumes - how many people will go out and buy a cheap costume wear it once and throw it away. People are freezing to death, some people have no roof over there head. Cloth is a precious resource that again we choose to waste.

I'm sure there are other things, but I'm sure you get the picture. And just so you don't think I having a bash at Americans and Canadians because halloween is mostly theirs. Two weeks ago here in Hong Kong it was Chong Yeurn (spl) which is a grave cleaning festival also called the Hungry Ghost's Ferstival.

Offerings - paper is burned and insence is lit (lots of it) Roast pigs and joints of meat are offered as well as fruit. What a huge waste not to mention the fact that every year they cause loads of hill fires which is just retarded: it happens every year!

Thats about it with this one, but they said on the news that most families were spending around $125US on offerings. Multiply that by say 500'000 families!! crazy money people!

Now there are lots of other festivals out there. I'd really like to hear about other festivals from other cultures and religions and how they effect the social, economic and environmental worlds that we live in!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

MonKey

A festival usually implies the consuming of material to gain something immaterial, be it a memory, feeling etc. I wonder how much gunpowder is used during the Chinese new year!

reply to post by depth om


Indeed. I couldn't agree more.

Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year as it should now be called! It's not just for the Chinese you know!!

Gun power or fire works would just be the start of it, again this is another festival with huge amounts of waste. billions of people use "Lai See" the little red lucky money packets, they just go in the bin after a day or two!

Food - People have huge family dinners, again with the offerings for the dead and more often than not they will all be burning paper money for the dead relatives to spend in the afterlife!

MonKey

Well.
I shant bother going into the history of Halloween (or Samhain as those of my creed call it). But they are fun for the most part. A reason to do something you wouldn't normally do. Mr. Vinagerhead.

It would appear that I did indeed make a big old cock up!

I should have posted this in AP in the social issues forum.

I was hoping to achieve a frank disscussion about the wastefulness of modern day festivals, something in line with the hell of commercialism and social peer presure, but nevermind. Wether it's fun or not was hardly the point I was trying to make.

I Mr Vinegarhead will now shut up!

MonKey

Now. Who is taking who overly serious.

reply to post by ChiKeyMonKey


I agree with you, I am think of the tomato throwing festivial.

Festivials can still fun, a way to celebrate, relax and enjoy an event, but something needs to be done about the waste.

There has got to be a better way to celebrate certain "festivials" in a less wasteful manner, besides just banning it.

[edit on 2-11-2007 by ixiy]