I’m happy that the class of 2017 has graduated from high school, glad that their proud parents and families got to attend the commencement exercises, but when are we going to quit celebrating every damn occasion with mylar balloons without a thought of what goes up is going to come down somewhere—shiny objects collecting in oak trees and brush, tangled in fences—littering the landscape. They ought to be illegal.
Instead, I challenge the Class of 2018, especially those young people who claim to care about our environment, to dispense with turning any balloons loose at their graduations. I challenge parents celebrating their children’s birthdays and wedding planners to think as well about how long the short moment of the balloons’ ascension will last upon the landscape.
I’ve had this rant before. Maybe I’m getting too old to call it anything else but thoughtless—but just plain stupid.
drycrikjournal 
Agreed. Much better to give grads compostable boutonieres and corsages. Boy, am I dating myself.
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I agree wholeheartedly!!! Not to mention the birds and other wildlife that get tangled in the string or ingest it thinking it is good to eat, or scared of it and run through a fence or what happens if it is sucked into a jet engine????
I like the boutonieres and corsages. They do last awhile and actually can be pressed and saved, along with the program as a memento. Also they keep people employed in the florist and flower growing business!!!
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A simple answer might be to have the ID/drivers license of the purchaser affixed to every ballon bought, so that if one is found they can be cited.
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