(OT, sorry) For those of us in The South...

[JeffB]

Another reason is the simple fact they are legal in most areas of th south.

When I moved to new england I couldn't believe that nothing besides sparklers were legal here.

{kiddingmode] I guess these damn yankees(tm) up here are too stupid to use anything else without blowing their fingers off

 

[Buttercup]

I don't live in the South, and I can only think of one year-round fireworks store. It's waaaaaay out in the middle of nowhere, except it happens to be right at a turnpike exit, near the border of three states.

Interestingly, fireworks other than sparklers are illegal in my state and three of the four surrounding ones. None the less, it is not illegal to *sell* them here. The stores all have signs that say "Out Of State Fireworks" and that seems to satisfy the law. It's ironic, because you would have to drive five or six hours to be able to use them legally. Judging from the amount of noise in my neighborhood on every summer night that isn't rainy, everybody ignores the law.

I don't like the situation much, because they terrify my dog. Her previous owner shot her, and I guess fireworks sound too much like gunfire. The 4th of July is a tough holiday at our house.

 

[Maldur]

Around here there are no Year round fireworks stores, as your only allowed to sell to the general public on december 28-31st.
There are "professional "firework people, that are also distributers for the december rush. but they blow up once in a while, so they are getting fewer. (at the last fireworks accident, dozens of peole got killed, and a whole neighborhood got leveled).

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

I hate fireworks. Not a fan of LOUD things.
But here in Georgia, you can't buy fireworks anywhere. Its illegal...have to go to one of the other states around us.

 

[Cintra]

Here in Tennessee, fireworks are legal, unfortunately (I'm not a fan of loud noises either). For the month or so leading up to the Fourth of July, these white tents spring up everywhere as fireworks stands, and just on my drive to work I drive past at least seven or eight of them.

Immediately after the Fourth of July, the fireworks tents disappear, and the animal shelters are full of dogs that escaped from their yards in panic from all the loud noises... (their busiest time of the year, I'm told.)

 

[Bob5th]

I don't know anyone that spends more then 20 dollars on fireworks during the holidays

$20? My cousins spend more than that on bottle rockets for us to shoot at each other. And around $400 - $800 for their fireworks display.

 

[der_kluge]

Most of those fireworks stands are fairly simple metal structures, that are relatively cheap to construct. And most of the large ones act as distributors, probably for many of the smaller fireworks stands.

Growing up in Arkansas, we would always go to the fireworks booth and buy $20-$30 worth, never a lot. Most of the time churches would run them, or schools as fundraisers. In Missouri, I've seen large outlet firework stores that remain closed all year save for a few weeks for the 4th. I live in Kansas now, and don't recall seeing any fireworks stores here at all, so it must be illegal to purchase them in Kansas. That doesn't stop people from driving 20 miles to Missouri to pick them up.

I, too, know of people that spend upwards of $1000 every year on fireworks.

 

[orbitalfreak]

We shop at a warehouse/distribution center for Black Cat that opens itself to the public during 4th of July and Christmas-New Years times. My family spends about $200 a year there, and others from the extended family spend about the same (even driving an hour and a half to get there, since prices are so cheap).

I know, this past July 4, we purchased $80 worth, and we were in line behind several people. All told, at our register and the other four lanes, they racked up over $1500 in five minutes.

 

[Jaws]

Not just the South

Here in Wisconsin, there are a few year-round firework buildings. But a bunch of the tent type stands pop up for the fourth.

I find it weird that it is legal to sell these fireworks here, but most are illegal to use.


Peace and smiles

j.

 

[WayneLigon]

Montgomery, AL, here. We have a lot of fireworks places just up the road (Big Daddy's probably the largest in the immediate area) but most seem to close up except around the Fourth and New Years (I've never bought any, so I'm not sure how many stay open year-round). Technically it's illegal to fire them off within city limits but that doesn't stop a lot of people; the family down the street from us had a whole party of people and were firing them off from the back of a pickup truck. No way someone wouldn't know where those were coming from

But, yes, we also supply tons of fireworks to the state around us where it's illegal That's why you see so many near the borders.