My family and I celebrated Independence Day by firing off some bottle rockets, lighting some fountains, and other fireworks… relax we were in Indiana where it is legal. In Iowa, fireworks have been banned since the early 1930s when a lot of downtown Spencer was burnt down.
Oh we do get our poppers, sparklers, and snakes which make for a lame 4th. We can watch fireworks displays by people with the proper permits, but that’s it folks. I can’t help but wonder how people in Missouri, Minnesota, Indiana and states with similar laws keep people from blowing their hands off?
Oh they don’t, but yet the vast majority who use fireworks manage to keep all of their digits. Those who don’t learn a valuable life lesson.
In Iowa, the kneejerk reaction in the 1930’s and the kneejerk reaction now to a problem is to right a law, ban it! Protect the kids!
We want our state government to wrap its loving arms around us and keep us safe. What ever happened to personal responsibility?
There will always be idiots, no ban can prevent that, it’s a law of nature. Perhaps we should try, let’s ban idiots in Iowa! Please?
I want my government to love me and keep me safe. No more idiots allowed!
Today it isn’t fireworks, but instead it’s banning smoking in public places (my family and I were ok avoiding restaurants that didn’t have a well ventilated non-smoking area). Also, I choose to wear a seatbelt. I don’t need government to tell me to do it. Some kid smokes incense and dies, and the first reaction is to ban it! Even though the package said it wasn’t for consumption or meant to be smoked. Personal responsibility anyone? Then we have some who want to force motorcyclists to wear helmets. Is wearing a helmet a good idea? Absolutely yes! Should government tell people to do so? Is that their role?
I understand seatbelt laws for children and kids wearing helmets, and even the ban on texting while driving since those types of decisions impact others. Let’s slow down the kneejerk reaction to a crisis or a tragedy and not become a larger nanny state than what we’ve already become.
