Rant: ignore me if you don't want to know

[hedgepig]

Just back from what could have been a very lovely day ... spoiled only by the mindless destruction and abuse of the land we share with each other.

I spent the afternoon in one little bit of woodland in a local country park. Very few people passed me, even when I was plonked on a green path for about an hour ... once I moved in to a small glade to put my back against a tree and just watch, I saw no-one. However, I could hear plenty of people, including some people intent on entertaining everyone else with a one note car horn tune. I think most of the wildlife decided to move away or go into hiding.

I walked down through the park to the beach - this place is normally beautiful, but the place was a scene of devastation. There were discarded disposable barbecues everywhere, and plenty of burnt patches of grass ... even the wooden tables don't escape this mindlessness. Bags of rubbish everywhere - left for someone else to pick up if it doesn't get blown in to the sea overnight.

The bit that saddened me the most was as I approached a small bay - I spotted a group collecting dry grass and thought - yep they are going to light a fire on the beach. OK, I'm going to give the the benefit of the doubt ... maybe they know what they are doing and will keep it small and leave no sign. HA! When I actually got there, they were busy trying to uproot a couple of small trees/bushes They were really going to try and light green wood that they could'nt even cut into manageable batons with a small handful of grass.

I wouldn't normally get involved - saying anything in a situation like this normally doesn't go down well. So instead of telling them they are idiots, I tried a different tack - I asked them if they were collecting the bush for firewood ... it won't burn you know ... there is dead wood just back there a bit. Response ... puzzlement ... what do you mean it won't burn? I left them trying (unsuccessfully) to pull it up. :twak:

Anyway ... like I said at the start - its just mindless

Another reason that winter is good - mindless people stay indoors.

 

[JonnyP]

Another reason that winter is good - mindless people stay indoors.

Yep... Out comes the sun, out come the morons...

 

[Matt Weir]

Funny that, I was up at Beacon Country Park doing a spot a ranger duty with Rangerman and we were saying exactly the same thing. It's a pity some folk can't appreciate what they have without spoiling it.

Nevermind, so long as there are people that will clean up after them

To be fair there was very little rubbish left given the amount of visitors which goes to show it the small band of bad apples that spoil the whole damn bunch

 

[crazyclimber]

While I can see what you're annoyed about here, I know a good many people (some of them friends) who I could quite imagine acting in the same way and doing the same things as the group you came across on the beach. Yes they're damaging the environment and yes they obviously don't know what they're doing, but they'd probably argue that in the scale of things the damage is minuscule and if nobody's ever shown them what wood is suitable for burning and what isn't, well there and then there's one way to learn.
I don't want to argue for them too much (I've tried burning ALL sorts of things when out and about - though admittedly I've never tried pulling up a bush), but the damage they did could have been far worse, and interested in lighting a fire... future bushcrafters?

Dropping litter - especially my pet hate foil or tin on the other hand - no excuses

 

[Bushcraft4life]

Yep... Out comes the sun, out come the morons...

Nail on head moment there mate.

I hate with a passion, being out and about in the Summer, there is no end to the senseless abuse of the land.

Twice now, last year and the year before i have been to Loch Lomond, a place of stunning beauty on a good day, Summer comes and it is wrecked, much the same as every other piece of decent woodland, beach or anywhere green.

 

[Voivode]

Indeed. The upcoming weekend is a long weekend here, and the traditional first camping weekend of the year. To that end, every yahoo loads up their ATV and heads out for a weekend of tearing around in the bush, getting drunk and causing general mayhem. The provincial government has taken steps to curb the worst of it this year, but the morons will find a way to redneck it up. They always do.

 

[Mike Ameling]

I've seen my share of those mindless animals fouling their own nests also. There are large portions of the "gene pool" that need a good dose of bleach!

The only good part is that those narcissists don't wander very far from their vehicles. As you get more than 100 to 200 yards from the road/parking lot, all that "trash" starts to disappear.

But occasionally you see a group of "party animals" who trek a little farther away from their vehicles. Usually to find a spot a little farther away from being seen by the authorities.

So it goes.

Mikey - yee ol' grumpy blacksmith out in the Hinterlands

 

[seany boy]

Yep... Out comes the sun, out come the morons...

Classic quote mate, it would be funny if only it was'nt so true.

 

[Graham_S]

not just in the woods.
I got back up to Aberdeen last night after a few days at home, and the communal grass area outside the flat complex I'm staying in was like a chessboard there were so many black squares on it.
The barbeques even come with metal legs these days, and they still manage not to use them and burn the ground.
Idiots. Most of them are students at the University too. so much for the intellectual elite

 

[hiraeth]

It really gets my back up, and i think as outhers have said the sun does seem to bring them out in force.
My personal rant is that there is a lane to the farm where i keep my kids pony, at the side of the lane there is a lake with a good population of wildfowl and most days quite a few people turn up with their children to feed the ducks, swans and geese, which is fair enough but given that they have come in their cars, walked not six paces to feed the ducks, then you would not have thought that it would be to much trouble to take the empty bread bags etc home with them.
Has any one noticed aswell the amazing distances that Mcdonalds litter can end up away from its branches, is there a competition running that i am not aware of to see who can get it furthest .

 

[Mang]

*Sigh* It seems form the posts that morons are worldwide (as if we didn't know already). There's an area near me by a river that is regularly used by these dweebs. There's an Ash tree that is hollow in the middle with large fallen boughs that they use.

it really is stupidity because the no lobes that turn up and find rubbish spoiling their illicit BBQ don't twig and think to take home their <r@p.

With all that Ash you don't need a disp BBQ! Whenever I walk the out-laws' dog I take a folding saw and take a bit back (collecting for our Summer Cub camp). I'm pleased that I will be able to influence their mindset at least.

 

[Jedadiah]

Ok, the full story of our experience is on the South Wales Meet thread, but i'll give you the quick version here.

This weekend we all went to a site in the lee of Pen-Y-Fan, Friday night we had a great thunder and lightning storm and Saturday the are looked lovely bathed in sunshine. Then, in the afternoon, a group of 8 -12 chav's turned up across the stream from us. Straight away they had music blaring out, swearing, shouting, throwing aerosols onto the fire as well as plastic bottles full of fizzy water. They got leathered and this continued into the night, culminating in a drunken row at 2 o'clock Sunday morning. During Sunday morning, they drove around sitting on the car bonnets, more aerosols, more fizzy water bomb's, then they started playing golf with bottles and stones as well as chasing sheep around. Then they got in the cars and started to leave with all their detrious and rubbish laying around. Fire still going, broken glass everywhere and an inflatable mattress (punctured) just left there.

We confronted them and a situation ensued with Dougster being assaulted and the police called. I'm afraid, after all the ructions they had caused, i could not let them leave without an attempt to 'educate' them.

They kept saying that it was their right to have a fire and who was i to tell them to put it out. Things got interesting when they asked me what i was going to do if they just got in their car and left! I tried to explain that, yes, it was indeed their right to have a fire, but with rights come responsibilities and it was theirs to clean up after themselves. One tattooed half-wit was mightily unimpressed when i told him that if he did attempted to laugh at me whilst getting into his car and driving off, i would put him on his ****ing ****, so he did make an effort to start cleaning up, however, when Dougster took camera phone pic's of the reg of his car and the individuals themselves, he was assaulted.

I do not recommend this action to anyone, but i felt that they had spent the previous 24 hrs intimidating evryone around them, including my pregnant wife and 2 year old son, as well as willfully destrying everything around them 'for a laugh', i could take no more. I am not a Bushcraft Vigilante, but if no one says anything, they will continue to do it until no-one can enjoy the pleasures of the country-side. They nearly spoilt a fantastic weekend for us and all the people who camped in the vacinity or were just passing, selfish, inconsiderate little scamps!

You will be pleased to know that the weekend ended in arrest and incarceration for a couple of brecons young ner-do-wells. If they only learnt one lesson this weekend it was do not mess with Dougster and Jedadiah!

 

[hiraeth]

Ok, the full story of our experience is on the South Wales Meet thread, but i'll give you the quick version here.

This weekend we all went to a site in the lee of Pen-Y-Fan, Friday night we had a great thunder and lightning storm and Saturday the are looked lovely bathed in sunshine. Then, in the afternoon, a group of 8 -12 chav's turned up across the stream from us. Straight away they had music blaring out, swearing, shouting, throwing aerosols onto the fire as well as plastic bottles full of fizzy water. They got leathered and this continued into the night, culminating in a drunken row at 2 o'clock Sunday morning. During Sunday morning, they drove around sitting on the car bonnets, more aerosols, more fizzy water bomb's, then they started playing golf with bottles and stones as well as chasing sheep around. Then they got in the cars and started to leave with all their detrious and rubbish laying around. Fire still going, broken glass everywhere and an inflatable mattress (punctured) just left there.

We confronted them and a situation ensued with Dougster being assaulted and the police called. I'm afraid, after all the ructions they had caused, i could not let them leave without an attempt to 'educate' them.

They kept saying that it was their right to have a fire and who was i to tell them to put it out. Things got interesting when they asked me what i was going to do if they just got in their car and left! I tried to explain that, yes, it was indeed their right to have a fire, but with rights come responsibilities and it was theirs to clean up after themselves. One tattooed half-wit was mightily unimpressed when i told him that if he did attempted to laugh at me whilst getting into his car and driving off, i would put him on his ****ing ****, so he did make an effort to start cleaning up, however, when Dougster took camera phone pic's of the reg of his car and the individuals themselves, he was assaulted.

I do not recommend this action to anyone, but i felt that they had spent the previous 24 hrs intimidating evryone around them, including my pregnant wife and 2 year old son, as well as willfully destrying everything around them 'for a laugh', i could take no more. I am not a Bushcraft Vigilante, but if no one says anything, they will continue to do it until no-one can enjoy the pleasures of the country-side. They nearly spoilt a fantastic weekend for us and all the people who camped in the vacinity or were just passing, selfish, inconsiderate little scamps!

You will be pleased to know that the weekend ended in arrest and incarceration for a couple of brecons young ner-do-wells. If they only learnt one lesson this weekend it was do not mess with Dougster and Jedadiah!

I can only say well done, just maybe these a*** ***** will think twice about causing problems again, and lets hope the justice system does not let you down

 

[ANDYRAF]

Good onyer lads, it's the irresponsible imbeciles like those that mess up the countryside and leave their carp lying around that make it difficult for farmers to allow anyone to camp on their land.

 

[MikeE]

Hat's off to those who took action in the way they did! Shame some peeps don't have enough respect for themselves to admit they were wrong and try to learn from the meeting!

 

[hedgepig]

Hmm, seems I have touch a common thread of sentiment there

Its an interesting problem. I actually believe in personal freedom, but in order for there to be personal freedom there has to be personal responsibility. The two go hand in hand.

People do what they believe is right for them at any given point in time, its a basic behavioural pattern we all share. However, the lack of thought - quite literally the mindlessness - that saddens me. The inability to see past the proximate and recognise consequence is the issue here.

What is morally the right thing to do? The correct ethical thing for someone to do is that which is best for themselves. However, in accepting that, you also have to accept that you must not do something that would harm others - for to do so yourself would be to legitimise someone acting in a way that harms you.

So your right to freedom goes hand in hand with your responsibility to not impinge on someone else's freedom. Your right to life goes hand in hand with your responsibility not to take someone else's life.

At the risk of sailing close to the wind on politics - we now live in a society where the state is removing freedom from us and also removing responsibility from us (the education system is now being morphed into a childcare and citizenship program). The actions of these mindless people who absolve themselves of any responsibility are merely a product of the society we live in.

 

[webbie]

was over at ben lomond yesterday and i was shocked at the lack of litter that was left lying around compared to the number of people in the surrounding area, only only major areas that were covered in litter was were some teenagers ( around the same age as me ) has been camping and had left there litter/beer on the beach and were some familys were having bbq's, its hard to accept but i do feel that some people will never learn and continue to leave some amazing places like loch lomond in a bad state ( and moan when it is not clean when they return for the next family outing )

so a hats off to all rangers and volunteers who help keep britain in the great shape its in

 

[marshall4771]

Well done - more people should make a stand.

What was the outcome when the Police arrived ? I hope Dougster isnt too bad.

Shaun

 

[Jedadiah]

They did not arrive. The little darlings scooted as Dougster was on the blower. However, he did pop into Brecon Cop Shop and make a HUGE statement as well as show them the pic's he took. The youngsters were recognised and the custody suite was alerted to, how shall we say, 'In coming'. Apparently the police were out to pic them up yesterday afternoon.

Rich was alright, a little bruised but he was on adrenaline so he was not hurting too much by the time he left. Belive me, knowing Rich as i do, it takes more than an oxygen thief with attitude to put the wind up Dougster. The little thug should count himself lucky that Rich is a level headed and responsible member of the community. If he'd have tried that with me he'd have spent the rest of his wretched life staring out of a window, dribbling!

I know it's wrong and i'm a believer in compromise and diplomacy in the vast majority of situations. However, if i percieve a threat, particularly to my nearest and dearest, especially if that threat is from a hung over chav who's kept me up all the previous night, i'm afraid i may not have been so charitable.

 

[marshall4771]

Well - section 3 of the Criminal Law Act states that you can use as much force as is reasonable in the circumstance, "reasonable" depends on the size and number of assailants etc

Shaun