Look, we get it.  Fireworks are FUN!

Until they're not.

As a kid growing up on a farm I had a lot of fun with fireworks.  But then I had 15-hundred acres to play in.  Later, I dusted myself off, cleaned myself up, and moved into the city where my nearest neighbors weren't five miles away but five feet away. Fireworks? Not so much.

In 40 years of radio and TV, I have seen too many house fires and too many injuries caused by fireworks.  So let's be honest, there's more room to be dangerous in the country.  Unfortunately, there are plenty of responsible city people who get penalized for not being able to light 'em off, but then fireworks aren't covered by the constitution and the "greater community good" is better served by limiting access within city limits.  Still, not everybody follows the "No Fireworks In City Limits" signs.  Some try to do the old end-around-the rules by way of the internet.

But there are rules there too! Here's what the Washington State Fire Marshal’s Office wants you to know about internet fireworks sales. The biggie is this: Fireworks cannot be legally purchased over the internet and shipped to a private residence or picked up anywhere other than a licensed and permitted fireworks stand.

However, under the following conditions, the presale of consumer fireworks may occur online:

For more information about the sale and use of fireworks, contact the local fire authority or the State Fire Marshall's Office at (360) 596-3929 or visit http://www.wsp.wa.gov/fireworks/.