As John Lott reports, The Washington Times has an excellent editorial up about the failure of fireworks regulation. I’m sure that the three year fireworks related death rate (0.014 – 0.018 per million) would be much, much lower if you excluded those not following common sense usage instructions. Why must we over regulate to protect the stupid at the expense of the masses?
Government can protect people from only so much, and if we banned all the products that caused more deaths and injuries than fireworks, there would be virtually nothing left to use. The freedom we celebrate on the Fourth of July doesn’t mean much if we criminalize even the tiny risks associated with fireworks.
John Adams, a signer of the Declaration of Independence and our second president, wrote that Independence Day “will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival.” This great day “ought to be celebrated by pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more,” he said. Hopefully, American enthusiasm for freedom isn’t fizzling like so many Roman candles this weekend.