Every year there are hundreds of illegal aerials and bombs set off around the holidays. These are no consumer grade fireworks but commercial grade types. Despite it being banned, thousands of folks across the state have these in their possession.
While some blow their stash off on New Years, quite a few blow them off at random times, shaking neighborhoods and scaring pets and people. It’s annoying as hell to hear these loud booms go off unexpectedly.
Politicians have “tried” to regulate this but have pretty much failed, desire the many injuries, deaths, and property damage. I get mad thinking about this because these same politicians were so quick to legislate on GMOs then pesticides based on sketchy evidence and fear campaigns over a decade ago. Farmers were seen as the danger on the community and it was plastered all over the social media of the need for such legislation. The truth eventually has come out and the anti-GMO activists have all but dug out of Hawaii with their shallow roots here. Damage was done to our agricultural community by transplanted weeds who had no genuine attachment to our culture.
Last night on NYE, I decided to make a good dinner for my folks and headed out to their place. While enjoying our feast, their neighbor started shooting off aerials and some random kids parked across their home doing the same.
As we watched these blow off, we noticed stuff flying right over my folks’ house. My son went outside to do his little party poppers and came inside with a handful of aerial debris found on our cars and driveway. My dad was livid since he landed up cleaning the debris last year.
We decided to take this evidence to the neighbors and those kids to tell them to move away or stop. The neighbor saw us coming and realized that we were not happy and my dad gave it to them. Then we walked over to the kids and told them to quit shooting stuff over our property. Thankfully they all obliged.
Fireworks were everywhere last night and and a huge tragedy occurred on the densely populated neighborhood of Salt Lake. It appears that an explosion was set off in a home killing and injuring people in the area. Such tragic way to start the new year.
While legislators were quick to jump on to the alleged dangers of farms, they are completely helpless and useless in protecting the greater community from a proven danger. There’s no sense of priority to address this issues despite the growing amount of actual harm caused by the illegal use of fireworks. They were quick to legislate buffer zones with very poor evidence based on the alleged dangers of pesticides, but won’t protect people from an illegal bomb that has killed.
While fireworks kill and maim, our farm like others, continues to grow safe and nutritious food for the community every week year after year following regulations, but a general homeowner can possess hundreds of dangerous aerials in their home and no one bats an eye. Something is afoul here.
HawaiiFarmersDaughter 