I’m a little perplexed by your statement here. Not all public threat violations are jailable offenses in many jurisdictions. Speeding, 1st offense drunk driving, unauthorized concealed weapons, etc. are usually only punished with a monetary fine. But that fine can be severe. Depending on ones situation it could be less severe to spend time locked up than to pay thousands in a fine.
Any chance we can keep the fireworks but make morons illegal?
-VM
I think the solution is definitely to spend more time talking about how stupid other people are.
The solution to which problem?
-VM
All of them for which the discussion includes words like “moron.”
Okay, I’ll play along: I think morons are really stupid. Like 9 out of 10 stupid.
-VM
Another problem solved.
Ignorance fought?
-VM
Our prisons are already over capacity as it is.
Fines are a penalty, but they aren’t a deterrent. Traffic enforcement based on fines has always been 99% about revenue, not public safety. Most people speed, and if it was judged a serious problem, serious action would be taken to stop it.
Sure, you can fine people for having illegal fireworks, but it wouldn’t actually reduce the use of illegal fireworks much, if at all. Since it’s just twice a year, most people would just take the chance and if they get busted, they pay the fine. Or, it could be like traffic court where almost everyone knows they are guilty but challenge the ticket anyway.
HELLA YES!
Next question.
Fines are in the category of, “If you curse, put a dollar in the jar”. There are types of fines that are actually meant to deter or change behavior, such as certain regulatory violations where you or your company are fined daily until the violation is fixed. But fines for speeding or possession of illegal substances tend to fall more in the category of “Haha, we caught you, you gotta put $100 in the community jar and we’ll use it to buy a volleyball net at the park!”
But a simple fine for fireworks possession wouldn’t reduce fireworks usage much at all, and I assume the goal here is to actually accomplish something. If the OP suggests actually keeping fireworks out of the hands of all but trained professionals, that will take sterner measures than mere fines.
If your hypothesis is correct, then I suggest we can solve the problem with more fireworks.
-VM
What about untrained professionals?
-VM
Why all the talk of morons? There are two NFL players who both lost fingers on the July 4th weekend:
What surprises me is the amount of recent news stories in the U.S. about fatalities and serious injuries in connection with fireworks. Does this happen every 4th of July?
Yes, they are fairly common:
What an awkward funeral, it’s a tragic loss for everyone who loved him but at the same time how could you not be thinking he was also a total dumbass who had it coming.
“He died doing what he loved, being a moron.”
It’s not funny until someone loses an eye.