So who else is going to be civilly disobediant this sunday?

[DrWeird]

In my state, the firework laws are written, I believe, by Heinrich Himmler. Basically, if it can start a fire, or if it works, it is illegal.

The way I figure it is some tired old crone with way to much lobbying power had her sickly 18-year-old toy poodle startled by some Union artillery way back when, and now everything with more firepower than Pop-its are banned.
Shit, they can't even sell "snakes" anymore, since they contain arsenic. (some PTA a couple years ago had arsenic removed from the periodic table in their classrooms, can't have the kids learning about that stuff.)

Me, I'm heading up to the in-laws. Gonna have a big old BBQ, african american quisine at its finest.

And fortunately for me, my in-laws live a stone's throw from the Puyallup Indian Reservation, and you know what that means.

You know what that means!

That means I'm getting the biggest, loudest, flashiest mortar and shells I can afford. I'm gonna tear the sky a new one.

So, what kind of ordinance have you got?

[benddem]

1. I am a Vietnam Veteran and a dog owner

Frankly I wouldn't be more pleased if they outlawed them throughout the entire US. My neighbors start as soon as they go on sale. It is ridiculous. If you like things that go bang...join the Army

[RebelYell]

8. Had a dog.....

....terrified of fireworks. Neighbors were setting off one cherry bomb after another. The dog had a heart attack and died on the 4th of July. Needless to say, I don't like fireworks.

Have another dog who is terrified of storms and fireworks. Vet gave .10mg Valium for him. Works, and works well. Check with your vet, terrified dogs can die.

[Reverend_Smitty]

2. wait a tic...

I'm still stuck on the fact that they removed arsenic from the periodic table, as if by simply uttering the word will poison the child.

What state do you live in, cause here in NJ, you can't get anything even remotely explosive. I was in South Carolina earlier this month and was foaming at the mouth by the sheer amounts of firepower, but I think that the airlines frown upon bringing them on the plane so I didn't get anything. I guess I will have to settle for what the township blows up for us

[DrWeird]

3. I'm in Oregon.

The arsenic in the periodic table was, if I remember correctly, in Nebraska. it was one of those "weird but true" blurbs in the newspaper. Haven't seen a confirmation elsewhere.

Here in oregon, the law is anything that "lifts off the ground" is illegal.

I'm heading to washington, where everything explosive is illegal, except for on indian reservations.

One popular stand is named "The Ill Eagle" repleat with a painting of a bald eagle decked out like a homeboy.

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

11. Or take a ride to Penn... they still sell there

[Xithras]

4. Time for the yearly piccolo mortar competition.

Every year some friends and I have a friendly competition. We take a piccolo and "modify" it with a hammer so that it will detonate. We then take an old soup or veggie can, poke a hole in the bottom just big enough to squeeze the piccolo through, and place the whole thing in a bucket with a little water at the bottom.

When the piccolo blows, the concussion inside the can causes it to go flying. There's a science to the whole thing...increasing the water depth decreases the size of the detonation chamber and causes a more forceful blast, but get it too deep and the piccolo will get wet and fizzle out.

I set a neighborhood record last year with a 250 foot launch :)

[DrWeird]

5. Have you got video of the crazy thing?

Sounds like a water bong I once built...

[Xithras]

9. Heh, no, sorry.

It's just a 5 gallon bucket, an old steel veggie can, and a piccolo pete (modified to explode, I assume you know how to do that).

Start out by putting an inch of water in the bottom of the 5 gallon bucket. Take your empty veggie or soup can and put a hole about 1/2 inch wide in the bottom (you want the piccolo to fit through it tightly, with no air leaks). Modify your piccolo and place it through the hole, with the majority of the piccolo in the can, and the fuse + about 1 inch of the pete sticking out the hole. Place the whole assembly in the bucket, with the opened end of the can facing down, and the fuse sticking up (obviously). Light the fuse and RUN.

When we first started, we had launches of 15 to 20 feet. Getting higher than that requires practice and a refinement of technique.

WARNING: Never forget Newton. Blasting a steel can over 200 feet straight up is an awesome sight to behold, but that can obviously has to come back down. I've been hit, and it HURTS. If you do this, never take your eyes off the can while it's in the air. Also, never launch around parked cars, babies in strollers, or anything else that might be irreperably damaged by falling sheetmetal.

WARNING: The typical can may be launched four or five times before it starts to come apart at the seams. Inspect your cans before each launch, and do not try to launch a can that appears to be stretched or seperating. Launching in a 5 gallon bucket ensures that any shrapnel from a disintegrating can goes straight up, but it's still a bit risky. Never try to launch any can you are unsure of.

WARNING: In case of a fizzle, always kick the bucket to knock the launch can over before reaching in, so the water can saturate the piccolo. I once reached into a bucket to pull a "dud", only to have it detonate and launch just as I was reaching in. A moment later and it could have taken off my hand.

POLICE WARNING: In my experience, law enforcement officers don't find this stunt nearly as amusing as my friends and I do. These technically qualify as mortars, and you can be fined for creating them like you would any other type of firework mortar.

[lazarus]

6. I want no fireworks around here

I live in Southern California. Last year, we were two blocks away from being evacuated due to a fire started by an idiot hunter over 30 miles away.

Since Arnold cut the funding for firefighters, it's going to be even worse this year.

[PragMantisT]

7. Sorry, DrWeird. It's legal here in Ark.

Stands are everywhere, and folks have been blasting them since they went on sale 6/21. There's even a town down the road (Benton) that can't find a prohibition against use of fireworks inside the city limits.

I take mine to my buddy's house on the lake.

Have fun. Buy plenty of sparklers! You can make an M-80 (1/4 stick of dynamite) from a box of 7.

[ForrestGump]

10. I'd rather be disobediently civil. I hate fireworks, at least the kind

that reg'lar people buy (in other words, I still have a soft spot for the big fireworks shows). Good reason for my antipathy, too: I've been subjected to too many idiots who shouldn't ever have been able to get hold of them, so many among us being complete wastes of DNA. Ban them nationwide, for all I care...