A real tweet from the Washington State Dept of Natural Resources, brilliantly using humor to make a point, and to fight forest fires.

(It's #HootinTootinTuesday again! Post some jokes or funny memes under this hashtag today, and bring lots of smiles to #Mastodon.)

#Humor #Humour #FunnyMeme #4thOfJuly #4thOfJuly2023 #FourthOfJuly #July4th #IndependenceDay #IndependenceDay2023 #Fireworks #FireworksSafety #ForestFires #FirePrevention #4thOfJulyFireworks

@matoakit
I live in the #ChicagoSuburbs. Every year, the open area behind our house (normally for emergency water retention) is used for shooting off illegal #4thOfJulyFireworks. And every year, our terrified dog has to be medicated EVERY NIGHT for a couple of weeks before the 4th, because people are mercilessly shooting them off. (Yes, even on weeknights.) The meds only help a little.

The past several years on #4thOfJuly, I have taken to loading the dog in the car soon after 7pm (when it invariably begins) and driving around on farm roads until around midnight, just to give her some peace. Sometimes when I get back, they are STILL going off-- M80s and everything.

Calling the police does no good. They're overwhelmed every year, and the back field is not off a street address. So if they show up, the #fireworks shooters have seen them coming and ducked back into their homes that back up onto the field. Those folks wait ten minutes, and the police leave. Then they shoot them off again.