November Editorial

Ray pleads for care at the up-coming fireworks celebration and asks for material to be submitted early to give the Pump team time to compile the monthly edition

Hello again,

We have reached that time of year which most domestic animals hate and is not best loved by our local hospitals and GP surgeries; Bonfire Night. For some reason, what is clearly a delight for many causes endless suffering for others. A King's Lynn woman has been campaigning frantically for a total ban on fireworks, but it is hard to see how this could ever be achieved. The culmination of so many major events is crowned by the spectacular firework display which is, without doubt, enjoyed by thousands. In a less spectacular way, so are the local family firework parties. For everyone's sake, we must just be sure that such events are properly and safely controlled.

Over recent years, there has been better control of the sale of fireworks and the recent introduction of the £80 on-the-spot fine for firework vandalism is a further step in the right direction. Of course, to administer such a fine the police have to witness the crime and that could be difficult when so few policemen now frequent the roads around our community. So ultimately it is up to us, the responsible adults in our community, to ensure that vulnerable people and pets are protected from the excesses of the firework celebrations. It is vitally important that all safety rules are adhered to and that all those charged with conducting the display make sure that the spectacular launches are kept well away from the elderly and our pets.

Having said that, I hope you all have a lovely and safe November 5th!

On a topic much closer to my heart, can I please make a plea that all contributions to "The Village Pump" are submitted by the stated deadline and to the defined drop off points? If you are in doubt, check page 2 of your Pump. Over recent months many of our regular contributors have become later each month imposing a serious burden both on the Editor and the Publisher. The deadline of the 15th of each month is set to give the Editor and Publisher a few days in which to pull the edition together before the 4 or 5 hour print run is started. The absolute deadline for printing is decreed by the Collation date which is set at the start of each Calendar year.

As for methods of submitting your item or contribution, these too are defined in the front of each edition. But perhaps of more importance is that they are submitted to the locations specified. We almost had a catastrophe in the October edition when some items were posted through Monika's door while they were on holiday. Luckily they returned two days before collation so I was able to insert an addendum. Such a work round is possible on a rare occasion, but I would not wish to see it become common place.

So please, your news items, adverts and articles give tremendous pleasure to a lot of people. Please give the Editor and Publisher time to produce the Pump without them having to burn the midnight oil.

Ray Thompson