Oh well, they'll get another chance at it next year when the teenagers come back to burn it down again.
I really shouldn't have laughed as hard as I did at this because it's probably true.
(a) Some assholes would actually burn down a park, for whatever goddamned reason. I honestly think destroying public property, especially a "free play place" set up for anyone, is disgusting.
We don't always see eye to eye (even though you're generally awesome), but I damn sure agree with you about this. One thing that drove me nuts about the public library in San Antonio--or rather, about their 'customers'--is that I would try to check out DVDs from there and Every. Single. Fucking. One. was scratched to hell and completely unplayable. Even releases that had only been out for a month or so. After this happened with eight DVDs in a row, including an obscure one of interviews with mythologist Joseph Campbell, I just gave up and didn't bother renting DVDs from there for years.
Oddly enough, I never had this problem with DVDs from the movie store around the corner from the library.
Ever. I suspect that it's because they keep your credit card on file and charge you for it if you tear up a DVD, which makes people inclined to behave a bit more responsibly. Mind you, scratching up a DVD is not as bad (obviously!) as burning down a children's park but seeing that kind of abuse of communal property still pissed me off, and not just because it inconvenienced me.
About two towns west of Toronto was this "secret park". It was THREE (kid-sized) stories tall, tall slide at the top, two wooden houses (girls loved it) and it had a FREAKING ZIPLINE. It's gone now, but I'd be damned if it wasn't one of the coolest parks on the planet.
That sounds fucking EPIC.
There was a very beautiful park on the island of Kauai (in Hawaii) that was hand-built by the community and a couple of local artists even contributed by doing some painting on it, ocean scenes, that kind of thing. Wonderful work. Unfortunately, it was hit by a bolt of lightning and burned down. I suppose that's somewhat better than the park being by hit a group of assholes that should be hit by lightning themselves, though.
I just started watching Doctor Who a couple of weeks ago for the first time and I've been making my way through the series. I'm now on the Christmas episode of season three. It's been awesome.