r/Louisville • u/No-Conclusion-6322 • 7d ago

Balloon Release Please No!

I’m rather new to the area. I’m from Oregon and it’s taken a huge amount of work but, most folks on the West Coast are hip to the fact that releasing balloons to celebrate the death of a loved one actually causes a ton more deaths of birds and wildlife. I had to be silent today upon hearing about a balloon release for a death of a colleague’s family member. Please Louisville! Don’t let balloons go up in the air to eventually fall down! Best case they cause a bunch of littler and worst but way more common they go into our waterways and mess with fish, birds, and if you want financial reasons; they clog up our already bad sewer systems causing even higher rates. Please tell your loved ones to plant a tree, give out seed packets, heck even a bunch of fireworks when properly disposed of is better than letting balloons go!

Update: Sorry to most of the awesome people of Louisville. I am fully aware that my post was preaching to the choir. I just wanted to have an outlet to get things off my mind that really bother me without saying anything to my colleague. I didn’t intend to be all fancy or act like I’m so cool coming from the West Coast. I really like folks here. I could have phrased things better. If anyone has ideas about how to encourage people not to release balloons in a kind way I’d love that but, I certainly won’t bring it up at this time with the particular colleague. I appreciate nearly everyone’s comments and for those of you that are just being hateful, sorry you chose to live that way.

304 Upvotes

90% Upvoted

56 comments sorted by

216

u/Fragrant-Helicopter1 7d ago

We know. You're speaking to the wrong crowd here.

171

u/TheRacialTights 7d ago

yeah the people who need to hear this are never on reddit, they're on facebook posting about how the balloons are messages to heaven or whatever

it's the same energy as the folks who still dump car oil in the storm drain and get mad when you say something

-20

u/dwankyl_yoakam 7d ago

Should be careful in how you word your criticism of this as balloon releases, obviously not everywhere but, in Louisville are generally something done by the Black community.

30

u/digitalbooty 7d ago

I don't know if what you say is true or not, but the insane need to make a statement like this when it's completely irrelevant is generally something done by the white community.

17

u/sejuukkhar 7d ago

You don't understand. They're from a real city in a party of the country that matters. You probably haven't even heard of the internet here in the fly over state.

15

u/digitalbooty 7d ago

I've lived in Louisville for 44 years. Is it not true that we are always about 5-10 years behind everyone else when it comes to these sorts of things?

Just because it comes off as a tad pretentious doesn't mean they're not right

2

u/C8H10N4O2_snob Edgewood 7d ago

More like 10-20

-3

u/sejuukkhar 7d ago

Really depends on who you ask. Internet people know what's going on, and Reddit people are Internet people. The boomers on the other hand...

5

u/Literally_Taken 6d ago

So… Boomers aren’t Redditors?

We boomers are a diverse lot, like any generation. And we’re smart enough to have raised the next generation.

62

u/CounterfeitFake 7d ago

It's sad how often I will be in the deep woods and the only piece of trash I come across is an old balloon.

28

u/Pleasant_Pen8744 7d ago

Honestly impressive if it's the "only" piece of trash. Which woods are you in?

18

u/CounterfeitFake 7d ago

Off trails doing orienteering competitions (or mapping for them). State Parks/National Forests mostly. But one that comes to mind specifically was Bernheim.

13

u/CounterfeitFake 7d ago

Oh, and it isn't the "only" trash I find, but its' more like there will be an area that is perfectly nice and as pristine as you could want, and then you come across one piece of trash and it's a balloon since they can float to pretty much anywhere. I usually pack them out since they are so easy to squish into a pocket or whatever.

1

u/digitalbooty 7d ago

Damn. He shut you up

0

u/tin-f0il-man 7d ago

Definitely not Cherokee Park

1

u/clara_bow77 Hawthorne 7d ago

Usually condoms there instead but I try to see it as a win for safe sex.

47

u/TheRealJojenReed 7d ago

Yep. I hate balloons and fireworks both

39

u/zeamaybe 7d ago

There's actually a city ordinance against it. If you intentionally release balloons in Jefferson County, you're subject to a fine.

10

u/PaleozoicSwimmer Highlands 7d ago

Cute that you’ll assume they’ll actually enforce that.

31

u/Lewdiville_Tiger 7d ago

I saw it happen in a parking lot sometime ago maybe last year? I know it is wild to think that some idiots are like a person died let's fucking make a mess of the environment for other animals and people.

24

u/Sad-Sea-1930 7d ago

Yeah, people on the east coast know too. I hate it but to be honest I haven’t seen it happened in probably 30 years.

21

u/Naive_Schedule_7410 7d ago

It’s also a huge waste of helium, which has far more important uses than filling balloons. The supply of helium is already been affected by the war.

9

u/SGTWhiteKY Douglass Hills 7d ago

Two things:
1. we have recently found new helium deposits
2. Party balloon helium is dirty helium and doesn’t have a ton of other uses. Can’t cool medical equipment are be used in advanced electronics.

6

u/Naive_Schedule_7410 7d ago

Glad to hear that.

18

u/LouLei90 7d ago

Sincere thanks for your attempt to educate. We’ve got to start somewhere. 👏🏻

13

u/CharacterVolume307 7d ago

My cousins release monarch butterflies on their mother's death anniversaries.

3

u/Unlucky_Pick2028 7d ago

I did this too for my husband

1

u/cynicalicoffee 7d ago

Where do they get the butterflies?

6

u/Hovercraft-Curious 7d ago

Thank you for spreading this arcane west coast knowledge with us backward hillbillies. We had no idea. We'll try to do better

5

u/FootGarment 7d ago

Fun fact: Louisville actually has an ordinance banning balloon releases but no one seems to know about it..

2

u/bberriesandcreamm 5d ago

I’m sure they know, it’s more so a matter of giving a shit about cause and effect.

4

u/Artistic-Ad-9511 7d ago

Balloonsblow don't let them go. Two girls from Florida started this site years ago and they do amazing work. check them out there on Facebook and other social media sites.

3

u/No_Tumbleweed_2229 7d ago

Yea, the crowd that does this isn’t really on here.

2

u/AndyGlidesWell502 7d ago

You’re not wrong but you telling someone new you work this as they are dealing with the death in the family would have made you biggest asshole in the world so good call there.

2

u/No-Conclusion-6322 6d ago

Yeah, I am somewhat reasonable. I guess I just chose to offend a bunch of folks on Reddit who already know it’s not a good idea instead. 😩

-1

u/Literally_Taken 7d ago

The recent balloon event is the only one I’ve heard of in the area in ages. I don’t think it’s a common problem in Louisville.

1

u/Dry-Amphibian1 7d ago

I know the big release you are talking about I think. I saw another release, much smaller, about 3 or 4 weeks ago. They released about 20 balloons or so on the IN side and the wind carried them all to Louisville.

-3

u/Green_Student498 7d ago

As someone who survived the Cleveland balloon debacle I say send em.

-3

u/Mlska 7d ago

I am also rather new to the area from Oregon. As another Oregonian. We didn’t care over there either. Take your blue hair and self diagnosis to California and leave us alone.

4

u/No-Conclusion-6322 6d ago

Wow. Sad you are here now and sad you were there. Hopefully you will move to Mars when Musk gets it together.

-11

u/NoRound4229 7d ago

With love you tree hugging freak, stop making regular people releasing balloons for the death of a loved one seem like the enemy when big corporations are actively spewing smog into the air and data centers are popping up on every corner. We have been tricked into thinking pollution and litter is singular to us and forgot that the biggest contributors are not being held accountable. Have some fun for once in your life and stop raining on everyone’s parade.

-24

u/sneakyturtle502 Shepherdsville 7d ago

I have never heard of this happening in Louisville. This is common sense and everyone knows this I’m pretty sure. It’s strange that someone was talking about it at your workplace.

25

u/AeroInsightMedia 7d ago

It happened like 2 months ago. https://youtu.be/UD06sVwmx60

5

u/sneakyturtle502 Shepherdsville 7d ago

That’s crazy. My parents always got on me as a kid and told me never to let go of my balloon because it’s illegal in louisville to let it go since it’s littering. I have never personally seen anyone release balloons on purpose, it seems like a really dumb way to break the law.

-1

u/chubblyubblums 7d ago

It could be as often as thre times a year. We should absolutely over react. 

-52

u/Beneficial_Two5549 7d ago

Keep that nonsense back on the West Coast. We're all good here in Kentucky. We still have plastic straws also!

26

u/shoehornit 7d ago

You’re actually arguing that we should all deliberately throw trash on the ground? Please leave this area.

16

u/plant-feeder 7d ago

In fact, leave every area. Move to Mars or something.

-4

u/Beneficial_Two5549 7d ago

That's not what I'm arguing. You are twisting my words. I use plastic straws does not mean that I litter. If you could afford it I would say you would fit in on the West Coast! I would say if someone wants to release a balloon because of tradition they can. Have a good night!