[StBernard] St. Bernard Parish fireworks ban may go up in smoke

[Westley Annis]

Earlier in my youth, I enjoyed popping fireworks (until I almost blew my
hand off), but don't condemn fireworks (as many in St. Bernard and beyond
still do).

However, I must admit, fireworks ARE NOT the common cause of fires. Most are
space heaters unsafely, leaving pots on the stove unattended, smoking and
falling asleep and of course, to collect on insurance.

All of these people should have their brains examined. There are some fires
caused by frayed electrical but in the electrical sense, many sockets
overloaded or extension cord usage to them are commonplace.

With this in mind, safety is key to using fireworks. Ex. Don't aim fireworks
at 3 blocks away, don't create a bomb with mixed gunpowder, don't use short
buses and light on ground and not in hand, don't throw at people as a
joke--common sense usage. Hospitals are awaiting each holiday they're used. 

The Chinese have been poppin' fireworks for hundreds-thousand of years and
we never hear about Chinese safety.

Bad decisions make worse accidents.

And of course, don't pop fireworks 2 weeks ahead of time or after 10PM other
than New Years.

I don't have a dog, but keep my cats inside <smile>>. But, realize they
might frighten dogs (but do dogs get post-traumatic stress when exposed to
fireworks over a constant 2 week bombardment?

--jer--