Assorted news roundup
'Flaming balls' attacker charged in crackdown on fireworks abuse
It sounds like some dumbass just shot a roman candle at a cop (which is stupid and he should certainly be charged), but this sensationalist headline just cracks me up...A 24-year-old Sydney man has been charged by police after he launched fireworks at a police car at Auburn in Sydney's west overnight.
Police say the man used a 75-centimetre long firework to fire "flaming balls" at the car as it was patrolling the suburb.
Hawaii has consumer fireworks law that limit people to firecrackers and fountains, so of course people want better stuff. Being an island, it takes a bit more work to bring things in than just driving across a state line like other parts of the US. As a result, "Passengers leaving airports in Hawaii are responsible for a disproportionally high percentage of fireworks that are found illegally stowed in checked and carry-on baggage in the Western-Pacific Region, the FAA said." As a result, black market prices for aerials are crazy, where "An undercover officer purchased 25 pounds of aerials for $1,400" from a legal fireworks seller that illegally smuggled in aerial fireworks. It seems crazy that a legal operation would do something that stupid, but with the markups they get, it isn't a surprise. Even so, aerial use on the islands is widespread and the police admit they can't do much about it.
Vegas made some changes to their New Years show this year, moving the firing positions from the roofs to the ground. They promised a great show, but the reviews were mostly negative because of reduced visibility. I haven't seen any video so I don't know how it looked, but I'm sure it can't compare to the roof firing (which was canceled because a welder started a roof fire last year).
Far worse than a lame show, there were some tragic incidents as well. 59 people died in Thailand when fireworks were illegally used inside a packed club. Somebody in Florida got himself killed with fireworks, although exactly what happened isn't clear. They talk about "professional grade mortar-type fireworks" then say they were legal to buy, it it could have just been a 1.4G shell. As with most news reports, they don't know what they are talking about, so who knows what really happened? Another man learned the hard way that sparkler bombs can be dangerous.
