GA Rubbish leftover

[stonecircle]

...so, we were like many others and got stuck in traffic on The Bus in Honolulu and got to the GA line just as it was moving in - remarkably we were not the last folks,though.

As I was filing past where the front of the line folks had been camping, I was shocked and appalled at the masses and masses of rubbish, lawn chairs, floaty rafts, etc. that were left behind by the people who had been in line.

It made me wonder if any of the GA'ers ever go back to clean their mess or if they think twice about it. In my mind, keeping care of our environment (not leaving your crap behind) is along the same lines as making poverty history!

I realize it would be hard to lug your lawchair and floaty raft in with you, but it was disgusting the amount of rubbish left for others to deal with.

If we ain't got no world to live in cuz we muck it up, we don't have to worry about all the rest of our woes.

I also wonder if Bono or any of the guys ever see this mess...

 

[corianderstem]

It's pretty disgusting, isn't it?

In Seattle, they made announcements asking people to collect their trash and drop it in the bins on the way into the arena, but we're a pretty big tree-hugging city.

Sadly, I saw nothing but huge messes in Vancouver and Portland.

 

[Chizip]

well if enviornmentalism was a bigger issue for Bono then i'm sure the fans would be happy to clean it all up. or at least have a banner proclaiming that they care about it

 

[adrball]

So there's tens of thousands of people going to a concert, a sizeable number queued most of the day to get in. So the organisers are not expecting a little rubbish around the venue???

It's not that difficult to put on a team to clean up all the rubbish.

 

[redhotswami]

Again I would attribute most of this to the lack of management. Did you also note the size of the trash cans outside of the stadium? And how few there were? Not exactly enough for tens of thousands of fans to throw their junk away. My parents have bigger trash cans in their garage.

 

[bfloxng]

So there's tens of thousands of people going to a concert, a sizeable number queued most of the day to get in. So the organisers are not expecting a little rubbish around the venue???

It's not that difficult to put on a team to clean up all the rubbish.

It was more than a little rubbish. Pen 1 was a total pig sty.

Remarkably, the venue announced that anything could be piled just outside of Pen 1 and would be donated to the Salvation Army (I guess that is an effort that would help the poor).

I did see scores of people from pens 2 and 3 donate considerably to the pile. Many in Pen 1, I suppose, were too concerned with their places in line. Apparently, poverty took second place to the show that night-some were just concerned with being up close to hear Bono's new messages than to heed his old ones.

 

[pgv]

It was a complete mess, and myself and the people around me made an effort to tidy our area (more for want of something to do than anything..) but at all concerts you get a mess - you can't help that when you have a mass of people held in a pen all night. There were times when we were getting moved around (like out of the parking lot into the pens) with practically no notice, and couldnt stop and pick stuff up unless we wanted to hold everyone back.

 

[NUMBER 28]

i don't get this whole trash thing...i know it's a noble goal along the road of life, not to casually throw things down, and walk away. i smoke, and i field strip my cigs when i'm done with them, and toss the butt that won't decompose naturally in a garbage can.

but at stadium shows? arena shows? how about the floor of the arena/stadium? are masses of people to be expected to tote all of that up the steps too? these places aren't national parks for gods sake. they pay an army of people to clean up after us.

honolulu is no different. there IS the element of surprise, not knowing when the line is moving, and how long you can hold on to something that might make you more comfortable for those last few moments. and since there was a 'pile' for giveaways, there's nothing preventing the people those giveaways are meant for, from coming in after, gathering it up, and hauling it away. nothing in life is free, salvation army or not. if they want it, i figure they can work a bit for it.

sure i leave crap behind. i know it's the only time and place in the world, where it will be cleaned up by people PAID to do it. and i don't have a guilty conscience over it. all the stuff you can't bring in gets left behind. i haven't been to a stadium show that was different. stadium staff know it, and that's what they are prepared for. people fly in for shows, and have no intention of flying out with the crap they buy to be comfortable during the camp-outs. umbrella's, sleeping bags, chairs, endless water bottles, and all the assorted detritus left behind by a thousand people or more. and as has been mentioned, there are rarely enough, or large enough, receptacles for all of that stuff.

and finally, it's always an individual thing. if YOU want to be conscientous, be so. ultimately, one can only be responsible for one's self.

 

[bfloxng]

Ultimately, one can only be responsible for one's self.

Well said

 

[Liesje]

I left behind a beach mat and two camp chairs in perfect condition. Everything else, I picked up myself and put in trash bins. We were told to stack chairs and mats at the front of the pens and security would take them to Goodwill. We did just that and saw some guys come pick them up.

It was a real pig sty. I'm not sure what's so difficult about throwing your trash in the bin and putting your donated camping supplies in the designated pile...

Once inside the stadium, we had pizza and nachos and when I was done I gathered trash from our area, but there were NO trash bins anywhere. I went all the way to the end of the floor and saw a trash bag hanging on a railing on the side of the stage. The security guard let me through. It was really nasty on the floor. What were other people supposed to do with their trash? They were encouraging us to leave to get food and drinks, but when people asked about trash the guys just shrugged.

 

[Pop Artist]

I hope this was the Goodwill pile...

 

[mads]

Yes, that was it.

Pen 1 was a sty, I agree. The others didn't look bad at all, really.

The floor is always a mess after the show because people don't have anything to do with their trash during the show but drop it. I think that's understandable. Outside the venue when we had nothing but time to clean up our crap, though... that's another issue. There was no excuse for the mess many people left.