[Zeke]

Sounds to me as if the one time more or less "safe and sane" fireworks are a thing of the past. Kids and parents used to gather outside and someone would have a few pinwheels; that sort of thing. Roman candles that spewed out colors was about as much as you were gonna get out of the 'family pack'. Nothing left the ground.

Some older kids always had some firecrackers they probably bought in Chinatown with a wink and a smile. IDT cops were too concerned. But nowadays the younger a-holes on my street manage to shoot full on mortars that will go 100 feet up. Some are even 2 stage. Nothing like pro fireworks but damn loud. These are adults with children.

I like to try and be friendly in the general neighborhood although I seem to take a George Carlin view on most people. A couple of times I have gone down there and really gotten in their face and they calm down. One day one of them is gonna call my bluff and knock my dick in the dirt. At least I'll collect on the civil suit.
In my city they set up a website you can upload video to. They promise to eventually come around to every address where anyone can be clearly recognized on camera. The deal is to hold the property owner responsible for the fine even if they are not present as in the case of a rental.

We'll see what happens if you go out and point your camera at someone who is half drunk and masturbating his noise. IDK, if someone was taking pics of me with the idea of doing me no good I might just be like them and break the friggen phone. Gotta think like the enemy. And I kinda go with the idea that is a risk you take if behaving that way.

Shooting guns is stupid. A girl got killed sitting on her couch when a bullet came down through the roof. Maybe she was in a patio. Anyway, no one caught.

In Los Angeles there are plenty of gunshots. Waste of good ammo. Going outside is risky at times especially as it gets later.

I've never had a hard on for fireworks. My dad lost an eye to fireworks when he was 12. You know we damn well didn't have any at our house. I'm not sure what he thought of the neighbors. He usually had 3 martinis in him so he probably didn't give a crap.

The irony is that my dad had an advertising agency. He had to be the character they based Don Draper on in Mad Men. Watching that show was reliving my childhood. One of his biggest accounts was Red Devil Fireworks.

You can't make that siht up.