RainyDay Posted July 5, 2004 Report Share Posted July 5, 2004 This is a HUGE problem in Oakland. We just passed a new ordinance, some of us leafletted, and e-mailed the new anti-fireworks ordinance around. Yesterday I bitched online about the police response and the Chief of Police responded and tried to be encouraging. But last night was a complete nightmare. It sounded like downtown Baghdad. And it lasted for over five, nonstop hours. In Oakland, fireworks start in May and last until well into September. The worst is around July 4, with July 4 the worst. Last night is the worst night I can remember. So what's it like where you live? And does it last all day, just at night, weeks, months, or just July 4? Thanks. We have another ordinance heading for the ballot this fall on violence reduction and I am gearing up for a battle with Council about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted July 5, 2004 Report Share Posted July 5, 2004 Well, it was our first Fourth in the new house, and quite bad-though not Downtown-Bagdad bad! But seriously, lots of stuff going off throughout the weekend, with the worst yesterday. And on top of that, NO police response for over an hour, and some clown in the neighborhood to our south, on the other side of a canal, was setting off ridiculous stuff that was raining down into our yard. Here's what I will never understand: As I understand it, in the state of Florida, anything bigger than firecrackers are illegal to own/use UNLESS you are a farmer and using it for crop protection against birds or animals or whatever. Definitely, nothing that is shot into the sky is legal. So that's the law; I wish someone could explain why there is a chain of "Firework Superstores" opening all over the place. How can such a business be licensed when its purpose is to sell things that only farmers can have? Its absolutely f-ing outrageous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7/4 Posted July 5, 2004 Report Share Posted July 5, 2004 I live next to city hall. Big party, but smaller than last year. I slept through it this time, last thing I remember was 8:59 pm... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rachel Posted July 5, 2004 Report Share Posted July 5, 2004 (edited) We get a mixed bag here, depending on one's location. I'm house sitting, and normally I only hear the sounds from crickets, frogs, and rustling leaves while creatures creep about the woods out back. Of course, last night the next door neighbor, who is known to use the deer that freely roam for target practice, had all of his gizmos and gadgets going. I bet he was wearing camouflage. Fireworks are illegal in Indiana. The "Out of State" fireworks stands are all over. You just sign a waiver, promising that you won't use the fireworks in state, and you're good to go... Edited July 5, 2004 by rachel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted July 5, 2004 Report Share Posted July 5, 2004 Hey Rachel, I used to live close to 23rd & New Jersey--we had fireworks year round! I actually did get used to hearing gunfire at night while I was falling asleep... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RainyDay Posted July 5, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 5, 2004 I didn't vote and now I can't seem to but we had everything and automatic gunfire. The M1000s are incredible. They set one off a quarter mile away and the windows vibrate. Only a couple of folks have posted on the police group today but it seems universal that last night was a disaster, even with the new ordinance. Hey Rachel: I bet he did have on camouflage! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rachel Posted July 5, 2004 Report Share Posted July 5, 2004 From what my friend tells me, her neighbor has been rather difficult to live next to...(you should see the beautiful redwood fencing she has constructed just to give her some privacy--it's as tall as the trees.) He has quite a few acres but decided to build his house justrightnext to my friend's existing house... Hey Ghost... Whoa! 23rd and New Jersey? Yup, you had it year round... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danasgoodstuff Posted July 6, 2004 Report Share Posted July 6, 2004 My 4th was relatively calm this year, but there have been times when you couldn't drive past my house or around the park at the end of the block. Too bad 'cause you can see the official display from the park but not from my house. My two year old skipped her nap, went to bed early and slept through the worst of it. Lot's of display firworks just a street or two over. Hosed the yard down as best I could in the afternoon but I'm surprised it doesn't 'cause more fires (as far as I know just one house burnt down last year). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Alfredson Posted July 6, 2004 Report Share Posted July 6, 2004 In Lansing the mayor and City Coucil just ruled that the local fireworks mega-store can't sell it's products in the city anymore. So now what are the owners of the building going to do? Rent it to a porno super store!!!! I think I'd rather have the fireworks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nessa Posted July 6, 2004 Report Share Posted July 6, 2004 No problem here 'cept the freakin' idiots yelling at me for shooting off the $800 worth of stuff I bought in Indiana. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajf67 Posted July 6, 2004 Report Share Posted July 6, 2004 I meant to vote for all the above plus gunfire, but by mistake I clicked on view results instead of voting. In DC we have tons of fireworks and tons of people coming to see the fireworks, although I never go or look at them anymore. I got trapped on the George Washington parkway one year and now I try to be wherever I need to be fairly early before the rucus starts. It rained like crazy this year so I don't even know if the official ones went off as scheduled. In my girlfriend's neighborhood in Columbia Heights it was all the above and gunfire. This morning we had the police violent rime unit truck parked down the street, although that's been common lately so I don't know if it was July 4th related. . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
connoisseur series500 Posted July 6, 2004 Report Share Posted July 6, 2004 I voted for a few stray firecrackers. If I were up on firework terminology, I could have provided a more accurate answer. I don't know the difference between a M1000 and an atomic bomb. B) I suppose they could very well be the same thing. Any MOABs in your town? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RainyDay Posted July 6, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 6, 2004 In Lansing the mayor and City Coucil just ruled that the local fireworks mega-store can't sell it's products in the city anymore. So now what are the owners of the building going to do? Rent it to a porno super store!!!! I think I'd rather have the fireworks. Trust me, you would not. Come spend a July 4 or New Year's Eve with me and you will change your mind. There was so much smoke on my street last night, cars were pulling over because they couldn't see, and when it cleared, they floored it to get the hell out of here. You would not be able to take your daughter outside to light some sparklers out of fear of getting hit by a stray bullet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J Larsen Posted July 6, 2004 Report Share Posted July 6, 2004 (edited) I voted for the last option - and it wasn't tongue in cheek! We have constant fireworks being set off by kids on the sidewalk from early June through the end of July. We're not just talking firecrackers here (although they do get a few million of those) - they also get these big rockets that go about ten stories in the air and make large, colorful and loud explosions. It's more than just a noise issue for me - I really worry about the safety of those things, both in terms of setting a roof on fire and also in terms of walking around the neighborhood at night. Those things do go astray at times. Oh, the machine gun bit. We had a drug bust in the building next door to us a couple of July 4s ago. One of the people they were trying to arrest ran up on to the top of the building with a large automatic gun and started shooting. As best I could tell he was just shooting up into the air, but I wasn't exactly going out of my way to get a good look. And this was when I had a swanky apartment in a doorman building by Central Park. Go figure. EDIT - If M1000s are those things that do nothing but make an incredibly loud BOOM, we have those in spades. I suffered tinitus for about a month after having one of those detonate within a few feet of me with no warning a few years ago. That was one of those instances that lends credibility to the claim that capital punishment is a deterent to violent crime. Edited July 6, 2004 by J Larsen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GloriousBlues Posted July 6, 2004 Report Share Posted July 6, 2004 San Diegans are incredibly paranoid about fire right now. I didn't hear any fireworks last night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Free For All Posted July 6, 2004 Report Share Posted July 6, 2004 Every July 4th I feel sorry for the pets. The vast majority of dogs HATE and fear fireworks just like they don't like thunder and other sudden loud noises. It's really torture for their sensitive ears. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maren Posted July 6, 2004 Report Share Posted July 6, 2004 No problem here 'cept the freakin' idiots yelling at me for shooting off the $800 worth of stuff I bought in Indiana. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted July 6, 2004 Report Share Posted July 6, 2004 Every July 4th I feel sorry for the pets. The vast majority of dogs HATE and fear fireworks just like they don't like thunder and other sudden loud noises. It's really torture for their sensitive ears. I can certainly attest to that. Our dog was freaking out, big time. And, when I was growing up, our town paid big bucks for a fireworks display. The town is situated in a valley, and the year we decided to skip the festivities, we realized just how much those booms rumble through the valley (our house is just a couple of miles away) and also just how much it disturbed our Irish Setter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RainyDay Posted July 6, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 6, 2004 Well, the shit has really hit the fan here over July 4. There was a very unflattering news report last night about our new fireworks ordinance and the Oakland Tribune has an article today. The TV video coverage was just embarrassing. The chatter online is so bad, my council person's aide wrote a long defensive spin about how great everything else is in Oakland (it's not). Our police department sponsors several chat groups that are available only by invitation to discuss crime in each respective area of the city. I've been dropping in on two of these groups and folks who are usually not so combative are really angry. Too bad reelection was last fall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted July 6, 2004 Report Share Posted July 6, 2004 Hey Ghost... Whoa! 23rd and New Jersey? Yup, you had it year round... We were at 21st and Talbott... fortunately we never caught a stray bullet from Dodge City! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jazzypaul Posted July 6, 2004 Report Share Posted July 6, 2004 Wow, I guess I'm the only asshole on here that actually really enjoys fireworks. Every year includes a trip to Indiana to get a couple of mortar kits, a few gross of bottle rockets and at least a gross of firecrackers. My neighborhood was a hoot on friday (I was in St. Louis for the rest of the weekend), with everybody and their brother setting off something. There were a few guys shooting off firearms instead of fireworks, and those guys scare the crap out of me. But, other than that, a good time was had by most. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RainyDay Posted July 7, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 7, 2004 Wow, I guess I'm the only asshole on here that actually really enjoys fireworks. Every year includes a trip to Indiana to get a couple of mortar kits, a few gross of bottle rockets and at least a gross of firecrackers. My neighborhood was a hoot on friday (I was in St. Louis for the rest of the weekend), with everybody and their brother setting off something. There were a few guys shooting off firearms instead of fireworks, and those guys scare the crap out of me. But, other than that, a good time was had by most. And you've never had fireworks related fires in your area? In West Oakland, one house went up in smoke this year. Every year at least one house burns up and often more. Two summers ago the creekbed a half block from my house caught on fire. It took the fire department a while to find it because it was back a ways from the street in an area thick with trees. Everyone on the block was outside trying to find the fire, all anyone could see was a lot of smoke. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris olivarez Posted July 7, 2004 Report Share Posted July 7, 2004 San Diegans are incredibly paranoid about fire right now. I didn't hear any fireworks last night. Same in Pagosa. It didn't seem as bad as in years past. People are really mindful about fire danger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RainyDay Posted July 7, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 7, 2004 Well, the shit has really hit the fan here over July 4. There was a very unflattering news report last night about our new fireworks ordinance and the Oakland Tribune has an article today. The TV video coverage was just embarrassing. The chatter online is so bad, my council person's aide wrote a long defensive spin about how great everything else is in Oakland (it's not). Our police department sponsors several chat groups that are available only by invitation to discuss crime in each respective area of the city. I've been dropping in on two of these groups and folks who are usually not so combative are really angry. Too bad reelection was last fall. More articles in the Trib and in the SF Chron. A reporter contacted me, and a bunch of other community rabble rousers, yesterday, . The politicians are really getting their backsides tanned over this. 'Bout darned time. Folks are generally supportive of the cops who are grossly understaffed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tjazz Posted July 8, 2004 Report Share Posted July 8, 2004 We must be getting old. Remember when it was fun to shoot off firecrackers? There must be alot of kids around B) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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