Use The Farce, Bob, Use The Farce
Tuesday, July 8th, 2008 By Mike Maurer
Twenty years ago there was controversy over burning the American flag. People found it wildly offensive, but it’s hard to imagine a better example of political speech than that, and of course there can be no doubt that political speech is protected by the First Amendment.
Now several legislators are upset about a stupid law that bans the use of fireworks.
Ohio’s fireworks law is “utterly ridiculous” and “makes liars out of all of us,” said state Rep. Robert F. Hagan of Youngstown, D-60th.
In fact, “Hagan and other local legislators, who are all Democrats, say they expect to move on this if their party takes control of the Ohio House after the November election. . . . “Let’s not have a law that’s a farce,” said [Rep. Ronald Gerberry]. “They’re not being taken out of state.”
If only they applied the repeal-stupid-laws-test across the board, that’d be reason enough to vote for them right there. Problem is, there wouldn’t be many laws left. Maybe the slogan they need is, “Vote for me. I won’t go to Columbus.”
(Meanwhile, the repeal effort was dealt a setback in Toledo, where nine interconnecting buildings burned down because of errant incendiaries: “If legislators were serious about eliminating injuries and fires caused each year by fireworks, they would begin by passing a law that bans the sale.”)
Tags: fireworks, General Assembly
July 8th, 2008 at 3:18 pm
Very interesting.
I wonder if they would also discontinue speed limits. Anyone who is *not* speeding or going 65 MPH or less on I71 between Columbus and Cleveland is defacto creating a road hazard as drivers try to get around them. The “whisper number” for the “real” speed limit is closer to 74 and the police could truly ticket 9 out of every 10 vehicles. I’m sure there are far more people breaking speed laws every day than fireworks on July 4.
July 9th, 2008 at 7:16 am
I like to think of taxpayers as an agricultural resource. Our legislators’ job is to farm us at the optimal rate, squeezing the maximum amount of revenue out of us without getting themselves Danned. My guess is the mathematical models show that the speed situation is “Egggxellent.”