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Fireworks: a commercialism hoax

Someone asked me: "Oh did you watch the fireworks last night? It was AWWWWWSOME! Soooooo beautiful! Uh... you didn't? But why? Don't you celebrate the Independence Day?" 

I often do not know what to say to these people, especially when they are supposedly my "friends". I do try and give a very diplomatic answer in a very polite way, not saying anything about how meaningless and environmentally unfriendly fireworks are, which they definitely have no freaking idea what the hell I am on about. So you'll see me coming up with fake reasons like:"Oh I can't see it from my window", or "I was so tired I fell asleep", etc.

What I've always wanted to ask them back is: what does all these mean to them? Oh look, boom: a red flash; boom: a blue one; and boom: another red! Then what? Tons of carbon dioxide and left behind rubbish to be cleaned up, plus money wasted on burning gun powder and chemicals away. Now... did anyone benefit from anything at all? Oh yes, the fireworks suppliers. But the country did not become a better place due to that colourful event you've just witnessed; none of the current political, environmental, or whatsoever issues in the country has been solved just because somebody burnt some bloody fireworks!

There are many more useful and memorable ways and things to do to celebrate an Independence Day, or Christmas, or New Year's Eve. These people need to wake up and realise that all these colourful lights in the sky are just a hoax in the whole commercialism game. The big players know darn well that these poor earthlings need something intangible to hold on to: a notion, a lie that is painted beautifully; a "celebration" that means nothing to them, but merely an excuse to get dressed and get drunk, and be part of the "in" trend whilst comparing notes on those cheesy TV commercials with a pretentious Independence Day theme. 

I'm still tempted to ask: what does all these mean to them? But honestly, I don't want to know the answer. It's too scary, and sad. It won't be long before the world become the one in Idiocracy.


Comments

Anonymous said…
We shall wish for a brave and noble time-traveller to kill that culprit who invented fireworks; and the one who started bottled water, and the one who discovered tobacco, and the one who...
2 September 2008 at 10:28
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