I’m amazed by the number of letters I read to the IFP blaming the locals for the beach closures!

Fireworks, Fires, Freedom. All banned from Hatteras Island

I have to agree with Phil’s comment. Although this years special circumstances warrant the prohibition of UNSUPERVISED fireworks, surely some funds could have been made available to have a modest display on the ocean for the thousands of visitors who vacation and spend their hard earned money to keep the island’s economy alive. Or perhaps we rental property owners don’t pay enough in taxes? And I agree that the overall tone of lifestyle decisions made over the years are restrictive and an assault on individual freedoms. If the trend continues, visitation will suffer, property values will not recover and the islands economy will be battered. Being known as the “Island of “NO” won’t do much to promote tourism.

4th of July fireworks are American tradition, just like life on Hatteras itself. A 4th without them is incomplete, just like a Hatteras vacation without access to the Point is incomplete. I commend the Ocracoke Business and Civic Association and hope they will be successful next year. Irene, I think you are school-marmy on this one.

I agree too. How dare they infringe on my right to watch the islands burn!

We all know the environmental groups and the NPS are behind this American freedom being taken from us. We have always done it this way and it matters not about safety or danger of fire. Those do-gooders are always trying to change things. Rally around the flag boys and girls this ban will be the doom for HI and OI

Life is about choices. The Powers that be made their choice to ban certain things. You can choose to leave. You can choose to find riding on beaches and fireworks somewhere else. If the island economy suffered enough maybe they’ll change their minds after vacationers choose somewhere else to go. However I commend their efforts to preserve their beautiful and natural home. Many places have not taken proper precautions in order to preserve their natural grace. These same places now have campaigns to clean up their natural environments due to the fact that they have been spoiled at the expense of mans folly.

Make A choice. Choosing to complain won’t help you- it will just make your vacation miserable.

The problem is, once the environmental pit pulls grab onto something, they don’t let go. Eventually it’s all their way or the highway, people’s livelyhoods be damned. Notice how the rulings are increasingly against the common sense compromises? The ultimate strategy is to turn this place into a bird and turtle santuary.

Thomas Paine once said that "To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead."

We’re talking fireworks people – they go boom and make pretty lights and colors. Equating them to freedom, or their temporary ban leading to end of life as we know it (or at least the death of prosperity) on the Outer Banks is a bit of a leap.

Fireworks are not an inalienable right. Hatteras and Ocracoke had ample reason, this year, to ban fireworks, personal or commercial, for all the reasons Irene listed.

We should be more concerned with governments that cut essential services in these trying times while funding pyrotechnics. What’s next – bread and circuses?

The only thing Irene got wrong was a bit of the history (and that is understandable). The Continental Congress voted to ratify the Declaration of Independence on July 2, 1776. The final draft wasn’t ready for the printer until July 4th – and that was the date he put at the top of the document that was subsequently published. That’s the reason we celebrate July 4th instead of the second. The actual signing of the document didn’t begin until August 2, and wasn’t finished until November.

The Continental Congress authorized fireworks for July 4th, 1777, in Philadelphia, so we have a long tradition with pyrotechnics on Independence Day (which, by the way, wasn’t declared a national holiday until 1941). Hopefully the area will have normal rainfall by next year and the councils can safely allow the return of fireworks next summer.

You can debate and quote historical references all you want, however YOU are missing the point. This goes beyond fireworks. This island is under assault by the enviro-nuts, who are well-funded and have sympathetic liberal judges and courts in their hip pocket.
Was it really necessary to sue to stop a resonably thought out plan to replace the Bonner bridge? Or we just wait for it to collapse with 100 cars crossing it? Economic necessity and practicality has been outmanuevered by the leftist tree-hugging lobby.

We’ve seen this before in other parts of the country… Sue, sue, sue until you beat the locals into submission.

Fireworks next year? Even if there are moonsoons next year there won’t be any fireworks. Once something is taken away, it’s usually gone forever. What’s next?
No dogs on the beach? They do crap and release methane gas. Let’s do a study and see how the piping plovers are affected.

Phil your comment is dumb. You redneck islanders know that gun powder was invited by the Chinese? That fireworks were first used at distractions in times of war?

Yes, I love my country before any of you claim that I don’t. But fireworks are cool and all, but at the risk of fire, house or wildfire ( like the ones all around us). I can find other ways to entertain myself. Maybe walk or ride a bike around instead of a golf cart. That way I see bits of the island that are rarely see. Oh and it’s good exercise too

It’s incredible that so many OUTSIDERS get upset about no fireworks! Why do people need more and more to entertain themselves? Hatteras Island and the beaches are why people come — to enjoy the peace and beauty. I truly do not think the ban on fireworks will stop people from coming. If people want fireworks, let them travel to DC and join the tens of thousands of people there!! For us and our family, we’ll continue to come to Hatteras to enjoy the beauty, peace and lack of big-city people!!

I can’t believe how some of you are taking such a simplistic view of this discussion, and missing the larger point. It’s not about the fireworks. It’s about gov’t control, which seeks to dominate and control more and more of our daily lives. It’s dangerous to assume that a handful of politicians know what’s best for YOU and your family. Decisions regarding your lifestyle and livelyhood will be made by people who in all probability will be out of office in a few years – but YOU will have to live with their decisions. I’m not advocating anarchy, but for God’s sake people, wake up and fight for what you believe in.

For God’s sake, we’re talking about a temporary ban on fireworks and fires. Its a local decision based on local conditions. Eastern NC has already seen a couple of fires this year that have blown smoke as far north as Richmond. I don’t believe any lawsuits or potions from the environmental faction preceded this vote by the duly elected representatives of Hyde and Dare counties.

A necessary function of government is to protect individual’s rights and property from others, including those who have scant resources in the common sense department.

If one follows Al’s logic, any action taken by government can be construed as a step towards a totalitarian state. But stating that a fireworks ban is part of some master plan by the "enviro-nuts" to take over the Outer Banks is a bit far fetched, even in these days of rampant conspiracy theories. There are legitimate gripes about the over-reach of the Consent Decree by a conservative judge and his environmentalist pals, but this isn’t one of them.

AGAIN, Boogamite, you reduce the discussion to a fireworks ban. Let’s try again… it’s not only about banning fireworks. It’s about the population slowly loosing the right to maintain their liberty and private property rights. Not just on HI, but all over this country. And, if you think we’re NOT closer to a totalitarian state in 2011 than we were, say, 20 years ago – I have a bridge to sell you.
(not the Bonner bridge; it’s not worth much).

Al, the article was about a fireworks ban. Don’t blame me if you can’t stay on topic.

Hey, you started getting all preachy. I guess we should thank you for correcting Irene’s recollection of American history. However there’s nothing wrong with expanding the discussion. The fireworks ban is just a small indication of a much larger issue, The EPA and Audobon Society trying to wreck the island’s economy, the bridge replacement issue, no tapping this country’s enormous energy potential, no off shore drilling basically anywhere, drive the cars WE SAY you can drive, use the lightbulbs WE SAY you can use, oh yeah and coming soon energy monitors in your homes. Oh, and don’t worry, the governments eventual single payer health plan will make life wonderful for everyone, and we’ll appoint CZARS for high level gov’t positions without the approval of voters or Congress, we’ll enter into wars without congresional approval- oh, and don’t worry – Americans are too fat so we’ll limit your food choices and MAKE manufacturers change food formulations and MAKE restaurants sell the foods WE think you should eat. I could go on but I’m sure you think this is all wonderful… that the government is merely providing the “services” we so desperately need, because the masses need protection and can’t think for themselves. It’s all part of this governments “central planning” agenda. Something James Madison and his buddies would have surely found offensive.

Thank you, Lucy for a lucid intelligent rebuttal of my positions.
Typical.

Hold on their Brother Al. Take a breath. Get a grip. You’re wanting to expand the discussion, but all I’m hearing is you directing a lot of feverish wind up my nether regions.

No offshore drilling? Yes, there was a moratorium on new deepwater oil well permits after the massive spill last summer. I can see where someone who can’t see the wisdom of a fireworks ban doesn’t see the logic in that. But since the moratorium (on deepwater wells) was lifted in October 2010, there have been at least 6 permits granted, with 12 pending, and the current administration is working on speeding up the process. Permits for shallow water wells were not affected by the moratorium, but their numbers are well below pre-BP spill levels. This is all for wells yet to come, but your statement was "No offshore drilling basically anywhere". Where exactly does the 587,967,310 barrels of oil produced last year on the outer continental shelf of the US come from? Trust me, fact check Michele Bachmann before using her as a source of information.

You can drive whatever you want – just don’t whine about $5.00 gas the next time the price runs up (and then $6, and then $7, and then ???). It would be nice if conservation was a personal virtue, but the average US citizen is proven not to be virtuous in that regards. Even if we drilled in ANWR, filled our shining seas with oil rigs, and had a pump in every backyard, we can’t produce ourselves out of our oil addiction. We got a spending, I mean consumption problem, not production. We’re still the #3 producer of oil worldwide, but we consume as much as China, Japan, India, Russia, and Germany combined. We could do what most other industrialized countries do – tax the bejesus out of gasoline to encourage conservation and generate revenue for roads and bridges, but I’m sure that is a non-starter given the current political climate and economic situation.

Personally, I hope you’re right that we are headed toward single payer. We currently spend 16% of our GDP for healthcare, more than any other country, and the cost goes up every year. By most objective standards our results for such an expenditures are abysmal. Health insurance costs are a staggering burden on US businesses. Single payer isn’t a panacea, but it works better than our current system. Ask a Canadian if they would trade their system for ours – I have, and they resoundingly say no.

Voters never have had a say in hiring for high level positions. Where the heck did that come from? Is you’re Kool Aid tainted? Congress doesn’t have a say – its the Senate whose advice and consent is required for certain positions. Read the Constitution. Article II, Section 2, paragraph 2 states:
[The President] shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, to make Treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present concur; and he shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the Supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States, whose Appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by Law: but the Congress may by Law vest the Appointment of such inferior Officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments.

So Congress has the power to stop this practice, but they would rather throw stones at the current occupant of the White House about the practice (every President from Nixon has had advisors the press has dubbed "Czars").

I could go on all day about your illogical (and off-topic) rant, but I’d be foolish to argue with someone who can channel the spirit of James Madison. We are loosing our rights, but you weep for your lost fireworks and curse those who don’t watch Fox News.

First of all, no president has appointed more politically biased “czars” than this president. And, if you are as well informed as you let on, you KNOW that this administration has fought the NEW exploration of oil, coal and gas whenever and where ever they can. We seem to have no problem, however, letting other countries explore dangerously close to our soveriegn waters. And you know what, I really don’t give a crap that we consume proportionally more than Russia or China. That has very little to do with the cost of a barrel of oil. The cost is determined on the open market by speculators. If we announced an AGGRESSIVE policy of domestic exploration, just that perception would spook the market and prices would drop. We have enough untapped energy in North America to be self sufficient for several hundred years. And that’s not to say that we should not continue to develop alternative energy, but let’s get real for a minute. The day where we can forego traditional energy is far, far off. As far as taxing oil to rebuild infrastructure – where did all of your 700 billion plus in stimulas go? I’ll tell you where – to prop up the unions bankrupt pension funds and repay the annointed ones’ buddies. How about getting GE to pay some taxes for God’s sake? Zero – that’s what they paid in federal taxes. But hey, their CEO is your president’s best buddy, right? And tell me, if a foreign dignitary needs a major operation, where do they go ?Canada? I think not. They come here. You don’t blow up the worlds best healthcare system because it doesn’t work for a small percentage of the population.Ask a Canadian how long they have to wait for an MRI or breast exam. Their system is appalling. You make reasonable changes wherever possible, and take it slow. Companies are so spooked by this adminstration that there’re holding off on capital investments and hiring. No one knows what the next “change we can believe in” will be. How do you like the new unemployment numbers? And nobody talks about real unemployment and underemployment, more in the range of 17%.

Fortunately, the current occupant of the White House and his merry band of Social Engineers will be removed in the next election, as the spell cast among the gullable
population has certainly worn off by now. We’re not ready to live in teepees lit by candles and a windmill to power our grist mills. This is America. Many generations have sacrificed to bestow upon us the greatest country and best standard of living in modern history. Why else are so many of the “downtrodden” risking so much to enter here illegally?

You, my friend, may want to fire up that electric car and take a ride to the airport (if it will make it that far), find a nice prototype of a solar powered jumbo jet and fly over to Greece, to see first-hand how social engineering and the ‘nanny state” operates. They thought they had it right, but there’s one problem. Sooner or later the gov’t runs out of private sector money to steal, then the whole system collapses like a house of cards.
Nice talking to you.

1) “First of all, no president has appointed more politically biased “czars” than this president.” False. The president doesn’t appoint anyone to a position called ‘czar’ – it’s a title bestowed by the media. Depending upon who you listen to, you may find Obama or G.W. Bush as the man with the most “czar” positions (and all it takes is someone in the media calling a given position a “czar” to qualify). But G.W. Bush is tops when it comes to the number of people appointed to positions denoted “czar” by the media (of course, he had a few more years to appoint multiple partisans to these posts).
2) “And, if you are as well informed as you let on, you KNOW that this administration has fought the NEW exploration of oil, coal and gas whenever and where ever they can.” False. In the spring of 2010, Obama was ready to open up new areas for oil leases, including off-shore (in addition to selling 6,800 tracts covering 36 million acres off the coasts of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama in March 2010). Then the BP oil spill came along and he put a moritorium on new deep water permits. Predicitably, that has slowed off-shore oil drilling. The Obama administration still backs fracking, despite growing evidence of the damage this process is doing to certain areas of the country. The Obama administration is cracking down on safety violations after the Upper Big Branch mine disaster, but in March 2010 Ken Salazaar announced an expansion of Wyoming coal mining by 2.3 Billion tons.
3) “We seem to have no problem, however, letting other countries explore dangerously close to our soveriegn waters.” I assume you mean explorations in international waters? You know what “international waters” means, don’t you?
4) “And you know what, I really don’t give a crap that we consume proportionally more than Russia or China. That has very little to do with the cost of a barrel of oil. The cost is determined on the open market by speculators.” False. Basic economics and the law of supply and demand. Speculators can drive the price up (or down) in the short term, but without the underlying demand (25% of which comes from the US), the price would eventually fall.
5) “If we announced an AGGRESSIVE policy of domestic exploration, just that perception would spook the market and prices would drop.” True, for the short term. See #6 why this isn’t a long term solution.
6) “We have enough untapped energy in North America to be self sufficient for several hundred years.” True, if we start to conserve and develop alternatives. However, from your statements, I don’t think you would include this qualification to make this a true statement.
7) “And that’s not to say that we should not continue to develop alternative energy, but let’s get real for a minute.” Getting back to reality would be a good thing.
8) “As far as taxing oil to rebuild infrastructure – where did all of your 700 billion plus in stimulas go? I’ll tell you where – to prop up the unions bankrupt pension funds and repay the annointed ones’ buddies.” False, as well as being a logical fallacy. About a third of it went towards tax cuts (yes, tax cuts). About a third went toward extending unemployment benefits, education, and health care. The remainder went toward federal contracts, grants, and loans (a lot of which went toward propping up flagging state budgets).
9) “How about getting GE to pay some taxes for God’s sake? Zero – that’s what they paid in federal taxes. But hey, their CEO is your president’s best buddy, right?” I agree. You do realize that 2/3 of all corporations pay no federal income taxes, right? You do know what the chances of getting this changed given the current makeup of Congress, don’t you?
10) “And tell me, if a foreign dignitary needs a major operation, where do they go ?Canada? I think not. They come here.” Foreign dignitaries can afford to go wherever they want. However, the high cost of medical treatment in the US has lead to the emerging market for medical tourism.
11) “You don’t blow up the worlds best healthcare system because it doesn’t work for a small percentage of the population.” How does one judge “the world’s best healthcare system”? By results? The US ranks 49th in life expectancy. 45th in infant mortality. In overall health care, the World Health Organization ranked the US 37th overall. But we are #1 when it comes to amount paid. 40+ million people without health insurance is not a small percentage. Sure, they get emergency care, but who pays for that?
12) “Companies are so spooked by this adminstration that there’re holding off on capital investments and hiring.” False. Companies are spooked by the recesssion. The administration and Congress are bought and paid for – why would they spook them?
13) “How do you like the new unemployment numbers?” I think they are abominable. But what do you expect when the number one priority of the Speaker of the House is to unseat the current President?
14) “Fortunately, the current occupant of the White House and his merry band of Social Engineers will be removed in the next election, as the spell cast among the gullable
population has certainly worn off by now.” First you channel one of the founding fathers. Now you think getting elected is a function of a voodoo ritual? You’re really weird.
15) “Why else are so many of the “downtrodden” risking so much to enter here illegally?” Because US businesses will pay them substandard wages to do menial jobs, knowing they won’t complain about unsafe working conditions?

It’s obvious that you have problems dealing with reality. I suggest you tune out Glen Beck for a few days – you’ll feel better. You’re diatribe doesn’t make any supportable arguments on various federal policy issues, much less the local decision to temporarily ban fireworks due to dry conditions.

For the record, to all worried about gov’t control vs the fireworks ban of individual use of fireworks.

The fireworks ban for other than organized permitted events was requested by the residents of Hatteras and Ocracoke Islands. Ocracoke first, Hatteras later. Would not have happened if they had not wanted it.

And the Ocracoke individual ban was in place before the tragic event at the organized permitted event.

NC has long had a law that nothing that explodes or goes airborne is legal. The more recent individual total bans basically just added sparkler/fountain type stuff to the existing law for Hatteras and Ocracoke Islands.

And again at the request of the folks who live there.

YAWN…………..

my comment wasn’t directed at you, jimmy, just at the two posts above yours.

I agree that LARGE fireworks should not be allowed in the hands of inexperienced folks, but can you seriously say that fireworks are not naturally associated July 4th…. I feel we could have had a great fireworks show put on by some of our volunteer firemen, as we have always done! The only other place to see fireworks was up in Nags Head or Manteo. Living in Frisco, I already fight traffic everyday going to work, the post office, the grocery store, etc…. Do you really think I would fight the traffic on a two lane road, flooded by hundreds of people all trying to go see the ONLY fireworks display for the 4th. Yeah right!!!