Arson at Bucky Boyle Park
(This is a commentary on the recent fire at Bucky Boyle Park, for the story and photos, click here)
Whoever is responsible for setting a playground on fire is real jackass. What happened yesterday in Bucky Boyle Park is despicable and wrong. Bucky Boyle Park is a very bright spot in an area of Allentown without a lot of them. Over the summer, during many visits to the park, I witnessed a park full of local kids enjoying the playground and the splash area. It's a great thing to see.
Yesterday, some moron or morons, in an act of incredible disrespect and ignorance set this wonderful asset in downtown Allentown on fire. You can see in the photos on the Morning Call how half of the main area of playground equipment had simply melted into a burnt pile of plastic. What unbelievable people would do this?
Bucky Boyle park has a sad history of vandalism and this latest inane act is just purely ridiculous. I sincerely hope that the bums responsible for this are caught. If I were a judge, they would be sentenced to 200 hours of community service in the parks as well as tasked with raising the funds needed to cover the reconstruction of the playground they destroyed.
As a defender, lover, and fan of our parks, this arson disgusts and offends me. In the comment section on the Morning Call a proactive individual suggested sending donations to the Parks Department to help with rebuilding. I want to commend that person and encourage that activity.
What made that comment so different is that when some terrible and stupid thing like this happens, the typical reaction is quite the opposite. I imagine most people hear something like this and say to themselves "I'm not surprised" or "That's Allentown for ya." I want to remind any reader reacting that way, that in my opinion, the comment left on the Morning Call encouraging donations is Allentown for ya.
I hope this is easily and quickly fixed. Bucky Boyle is a needed space for downtown Allentown. It really is a wonderful place and the morons who started that fire should be made examples of.
Whoever is responsible for setting a playground on fire is real jackass. What happened yesterday in Bucky Boyle Park is despicable and wrong. Bucky Boyle Park is a very bright spot in an area of Allentown without a lot of them. Over the summer, during many visits to the park, I witnessed a park full of local kids enjoying the playground and the splash area. It's a great thing to see.
Yesterday, some moron or morons, in an act of incredible disrespect and ignorance set this wonderful asset in downtown Allentown on fire. You can see in the photos on the Morning Call how half of the main area of playground equipment had simply melted into a burnt pile of plastic. What unbelievable people would do this?
Bucky Boyle park has a sad history of vandalism and this latest inane act is just purely ridiculous. I sincerely hope that the bums responsible for this are caught. If I were a judge, they would be sentenced to 200 hours of community service in the parks as well as tasked with raising the funds needed to cover the reconstruction of the playground they destroyed.
As a defender, lover, and fan of our parks, this arson disgusts and offends me. In the comment section on the Morning Call a proactive individual suggested sending donations to the Parks Department to help with rebuilding. I want to commend that person and encourage that activity.
What made that comment so different is that when some terrible and stupid thing like this happens, the typical reaction is quite the opposite. I imagine most people hear something like this and say to themselves "I'm not surprised" or "That's Allentown for ya." I want to remind any reader reacting that way, that in my opinion, the comment left on the Morning Call encouraging donations is Allentown for ya.
I hope this is easily and quickly fixed. Bucky Boyle is a needed space for downtown Allentown. It really is a wonderful place and the morons who started that fire should be made examples of.
Labels: Bucky Boyle Park
posted by Andrew Kleiner at
8:29 AM
9 Comments:
Buck Boyle is our favorite - a lot of downtown families (including us) have birthday parties there, and guests are always blown away by the beauty of the location and the variety of equipment. I'm shocked and saddened by the arson, but totally agree with your assessment; jackasses are the exception, not the rule. Hope they are caught.
I figure you have to be pretty sociopathic to light fire to a playground, so I'm with you on your commentary except I think the perpetrator(s) should be locked up. Who needs volunteers like that?
Anon 10:19,
Sure, lock them up but during their time in prison they should be doing supervised working in the parks during the day, for the entirety of their prison term and for a time thereafter.
Andrew,
What happened at Bucky Boyle could happen anywhere, but the fact is, it's more likely that an incident like this would happen in a community with increasing crime and increasing poverty.
Bucky Boyle has proven the point many of us made against the playground plans at Cedar Beach. And curiously enough, the local mayor's office insists that building a playground and improving Cedar Beach will lead folks to actually care more about their environment so that they don't destroy it or litter. I would submit Bucky Boyle as proof that well intended improvements are rather wasteful if the community hasn't already proven itself ready and willing to take care of such investments.
It is rather sad that an isolated incident of arson speaks for a whole community, but the fact remains that this community has some rather bad apples who are, indeed, spoiling the entire barrel.
anon 11:24
Your comment left me a bit confused. To explain my confusion let's go through your post.
In your fist paragraph you say that incidents such as the one that occurred at Bucky Boyle park are more likely to occur in, "a community with increasing crime and increasing poverty." What does this mean? What evidence is their to support this claim? Am I supposed to agree with the statement without questioning its validity? If so, I cannot agree with your argument. I would suggest providing evidence to support such a blanket claim.
In your second paragraph you do cite evidence. You claim that the arson at Bucky Boyle park is proof that, "well intended improvements are rather wasteful if the community hasn't already proven itself ready and willing to take care of such investments." I see the point you are trying to make, but you fall short in one glaring regard. You do not specify what you mean by community. Are you speaking of the community in and around the Bucky Boyle area? Are you speaking of Allentown as a whole community? Are you trying to state that Bucky Boyle park is a similar community to the one that exists by Cedar Beach? I raise these questions because they are of the utmost importance in regard to your argument. If you refer to the community as the one surrounding Bucky Boyle, are you then saying that this community will go to Cedar Beach and perform similar crimes? If you refer to the community as a whole, you need to read up on the slippery slope logical fallacy. If you are referring to the Cedar Beach community, are you saying that this community is identical to the one around Bucky Boyle park and will engage in the same acts? I cannot understand what you refer to when you state community.
In your last paragraph, you again cite some community which you never specify in your argument. Who are these people? From where do they come from. I cannot agree or disagree with your argument because, to me, it does not make sense.
I suppose you are relying on the assumptions of readers. I would warn you against such tactics. It is the job of those presenting an argument to clearly and precisely define their argument. You have not done this, and I ask you to be more specific. I would like to know what you are talking about without assuming my way through your comment.
Today I looked at the area marked off for the new playground at Cedar Beach. It is a relatively small area, and makes perfect sense for a playground to be there. I can't believe that there was such outrage over a playground for our kids. The Rose Garden improvements look great too.
I heart our parks,
Yep.
I'm a little worried about all this paving all of a sudden though...
Anon 1:45:
Arson at Bucky Boyle should be of no surprise to anyone - have you looked around Allentown lately?
No need to make things complicated. It is simple. The good folks of Allentown have been overpowered by the "bad" elements. The entire town has gone to hell, and what you saw at Bucky Boyle is a great example of how many of the residents of Allentown treat their assets.
Whatever district of A-Town you live in, you gotta admit, it's gone WAY downhill in the past 20 years.
Spend our precious resources on policing these animals, rather than on new pieces of plastic that can be vandalized or perhaps burned to the ground. When the majority of the residents prove they can respect their environment, perhaps then would be a good time to talk about new playgrounds. In the mean time, the actions of the residents speak louder than words. Clearly, criminals rule the roost here in Allentown. Don't spend another dime on them or their children.
I know what Allentown was like 20 years ago. I was here.
I still am here, though I do not know why.
Allentown is a disaster area.
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