Ordinance doesn’t get sparkling endorsement The proposed...

Ordinance doesn’t get

sparkling endorsement

The proposed ordinance in the City Council agenda pack of May 17

seems to allow young children to play with “sparklers” without parent

supervision.

In the early 1990s, the citizens voted to ban fireworks. The City

Council decided not to ban the fireworks but to restrict sales and

ban “sparklers.”

The proposed City Council regulations as published in 2004 would

allow

sparkler sales until 2006with any person younger than 18 allowed

to use fireworks as long as any adult was present. Why are we

allowing the use of an item that was allegedly banned by the council

14 years ago?

The prime purpose of the ordinance seems to assist the

organizations in

increasing sales by reducing the number of stands. This also

reduces the costs to the fireworks companies.

Why are various youth organizations such as Boy Scouts and Girl

Scouts opposed to the sale of fireworks?

How do the organizations in approximately 29 cities in Orange

County manage to raise funds without fireworks?

Why is Costa Mesa not restricting the sales to Costa Mesa

residents? Are we encouraging law breaking in the surrounding cities,

such as

Huntington Beach, Fountain Valley, Newport Beach and Irvine?

Last year the police were so overloaded with calls that it took

one hour

to respond to telephone calls of burning embers falling on wood

roofs

from illegal fireworks. The rockets were being launched from the

middle

of the street by adults and very young children. The police cars

were

being obstructed by the fireworks. I am not aware of any citations

issued. What is being done to enforce existing ordinances?

DARREL NEFT

Costa Mesa

Reader has enough

of ‘enough already’

Ms. Leece, in regard to “Enough already from sordid trial” (May

25), kindly save your religious ramblings for the pulpit. Nobody

wanted to hear what you said. The reason people want to follow this

Haidl case is to see these three degenerates brought to justice.

GEORGE LAMPINEN

Newport Beach