November 8, 2019

This is the state of the art for public-access machine generated text, as of November 8, 2019... maybe. This was posted anonymously on E2 under the Firecracker node with no real explanation. -- Tem42

Filipinos love to celebrate New Year with firecrackers, but a new report is raising concerns that the country's fireworks industry is not sustainable.

The International Commission on Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons has warned that more than half of the world's firecrackers are sourced from a single source in China – a country that does not even have a national fireworks program.

"China is an undeveloped nation with a small industry," said Iain Couzin, a non-proliferation expert at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London. "It's basically a market and nothing more than that."

In its report, the commission, which is part of the United Nations, noted that fireworks can only be produced locally for two months a year, from mid-December to mid-January.

According to the report, the country's fireworks industry exports nearly 80 percent of the world's firecrackers.

One of the things that is stressed in foster parenting is, "Don't get attached". As a foster grandparent, all I can say is, "Good luck with that". Had to say goodbye to three siblings (ages 6, 3 and 1) last night because this morning they went back into the system to be "re-homed".

The reasons for this step are complicated but basically the foster mom (my step-daughter) is expecting and was getting "spread too thin". I know the decision was a hard one and I totally support it... and my heart is broken. The kids have been a part of our lives for just under one year. I "got attached" to all three but the middle one (let's call her Fifi. I did.) really had me wrapped around her little finger.

So, you ask, Where are the birth parents? Good question. These three have four older siblings who live with their grandmother. Let that sink in. Seven children and the parents are too busy to take any responsibility for any of them, financial or otherwise. Grandma just isn't physically able to take on any more.

This helps. Thanks for being such a good listener. Hug your kids tight, if you have any. If you don't, hug someone else's.