Back in the day - the day being my glorious youth - we had FIREWORKS. Cherry bombs, M-1s, explosives galore. The Fourth of July was always an adventure.
Then… bit by bit… came the laws. Laws that nibbled away what sort of fireworks were permissible, until today you can basically buy sparklers and watch the real professionals shoot stuff into the sky.
This year, the Bricker family spent the holidays in the Dominican Republic, from where I now type this missive. Here there are no paternalistic fireworks laws, and here the tradition is to celebrate Christmas and New Year’s by blowing up things. It was an odd experience – in some ways very reminiscent of the Independence Days of my youth, complete with sweltering weather, and yet odd because we had a Christmas tree and Christmas Mass in the mix.
But that’s not the point.
Why should the state ban fireworks? Yes, of course, people injure themselves by using them carelessly - but isn’t that up to the person, not the state, to decide? I must admit I gave the matter little though until I saw anew how fun it was to set off real fireworks, that made real bangs.
So… resolved: fireworks regulations should be relaxed.
“Yes, of course, people injure themselves by using them carelessly - but isn’t that up to the person, not the state, to decide?”
Well I think the issue is about fireworks injuring other people. Now I don’t know how this serious a problem this is in practice but in principle the state may have reason to restrict fireworks.
Several years ago, while living in an apartment complex, I discovered my neighbors lighting blackcats and throwing them onto the roof of the apartment building next door.
I loved fireworks as a kid. Now I realize just how dry Texas gets around July.
Selfishly, I wish they would regulate them even more strictly. My dogs get all freaked out. I have to give them sedatives because they stress so much. Same thing with very bad thunderstorms… maybe I should write my congressman about those too.
What I think is horribly ironic is that on July 4th the very devices people want to use to celebrate liberty and independence are banned. In other words, enjoy freedom but only in a manner that is approved by the government. :rolleyes: :mad:
I have no problems restricting juveniles access to them, or to have harsh penalties for adults who misuse them. But to out right ban something that is generally only used a few times in an entire year simply because some dope might misuse them is ridiculous.
No, it’s not ridiculous. I lived in the same neighborhood for 18 years growing up and we saw two houses burned down in two seperate years because some oaf decided to light bottle rockets in the park down the street.
Sorry, but fireworks aren’t banned in many locales because some jerk might misuse them, but because they do misuse them. And it’s not so much that they harm themselves by their misuse, but that they harm other people.
Frankly, I have no problem with a state or city banning fireworks.
Back in the day there was this thing called “personal responsibility.” I’m not sure what it means but I think it had something to do with the idea that if you decided to purchase fireworks you were supposed to know not to blow yourself up, and you were supposed to know what things you weren’t supposed to blow up. If you didn’t know, and you blew yourself up, nobody felt sorry for you and you had nobody to blame. If you blew somebody else’s stuff you had to fix it or go to jail, and if you hurt or killed somebody else you were dealt with harshly.
Nowadays we don’t have this “personal responsibility” thing. Without it we are all apparently a bunch of idiots who need to be protected from ourselves. It’s not our fault if we blow ourselves or somebody else up, because we don’t know better. We’re like small children and we just don’t have a clue. Therefore if we blow ourselves up it’s the fault of the guy who sold us the fireworks, the company that made them, and country that said it was legal to have them.
I am forced against my will to concede this argument might have some merit. As a society we may very well be a bunch of idiots that nobody in their right mind would let have fireworks. And, until we reach the level of competence and responsibility of citizens of the Dominican Republic perhaps it’s for the best.
As a famous patriot once said: “Absence of fireworks is the constant price of freedom from responsibility.”
Personal responsibility, huh?
Folk like Neurotik would rather have the government over regulate things. How sad that not only are people willing to give up freedoms for the illusion of safety, but that they are almost forced to give them up because of the actions of a few idiots, such as the “oaf” he spoke about. Once again the actions of the minority dictate the lives of the majority.
How does your state ban fireworks? In Ohio you can legally purchase fireworks. You cannot set them off here. You must sign a form stateing you are taking them out of state within 24 hours.
I must tell you, there are a lot of people traveling on the Third of July.
Are you saying that the legal restrictions placed on the sale and use of fireworks has not resulted in a genuine decrease in the number of injuries, fatalities and reduction of property damage, but merely the illusion of a decrease?
They do it by passing laws banning the sale of fireworks, and laws forbidding you to bring fireworks across state lines. In Virginia, police wait just across the DC state line where legal fireworks stands have been set up in the District. Cars that are seen pulling out of the fireworks stand parking lot and entering Virginia are pulled over and searched with probable cause.
Well, I’d like to see a cite on that, but when I talk about people giving up freedoms I’m talking about all freedom.
Look at the freedom we have surrendered in the war on terrorism. Look at the freedoms lost on the drug war. And then there’s gun control. Freedoms willingly given up by the populace.
Yet terrorists can (and will) strike whenever they want, drugs are easily available in any town, and cities with the strictest gun laws have the highest number of murders. Surrendering freedom does not result in any safety at all.
Classifications of fireworks in the U.S.
The US limit of 50mg powder per firecracker is ridiculously low. The damned things can barely burst their container anymore, much less make a loud sound. You’d think the feds were trying to coerce people into taking them apart and building larger devices from the contents.
Why is it that every time some numbskull decides to set fire to his neighbors roof it’s MY problem? I’ve been using fireworks responsibly for a quarter of a century. I’ve never blown anyone or anything up, never caused any property damage. Because Fuzzy and his banjo down the street cut up sticks of dynamite and throw them into people’s gutters, I gotta confine myself to sparklers and snakes? Stupid. Plus, here in Indiana you can buy truckloads of fireworks, people do and take them to Illinois, wherever. Having restrictive laws has really helped. Sure. Makes too much sense to, for instance, hold people accountable for damage they cause.
Billy Rubin’s Law:If I want something, be it fireworks, or firearms, or vodka, or cocaine, someone is gonna figure out a way to get it and sell it to me no matter what laws there are. Is there anyone out there that still doesn’t get that?
Glad you’re having a cool time, Bricker. Be safe, come home whole.
There’s fireworks galore in North Carolina as well. I was tempted to buy 300-400 dollars worth the last time I was down there.
However, Maryland’s laws can be pretty punitive regarding poesession of such, so I didn’t bother. The last thing I needed was to be stopped on 95 on the way home for speeding and having the cop notice my stuffed backseat.
As for the validity of the laws…like a lot of prohibitions, I’m very ambivelent. Part of me recognizes the desire of lawmakers and society in general to protect people from accidents and uphold the general peace, but I wonder if legalization that came with severe penalties for irresponsible use (destruction of property, accidental injuries, noise ordinance violations, etc.) might not be the better route.
One thing is for sure: the banning of fireworks works a hell of a lot better than most bans. You rarely see any unlicensed displays (at least around here) and when you do, they’re pretty minor and over quickly…a couple of bottle rockets and some firecrackers. That’s probably because there’s not enough financial incentive for most people to smuggle and sell them illegally…but whatever the reason, they’re just not common.
:rolleyes: :mad:
