The city of Cedar Falls is on a great path. Rather than get lost in the doldrums of summer, I decided to commit electrons to our going-ons. There's lots of talk about fireworks and the mayors position, please read on...

FIREWORKS COMPROMISE

We gave it a whirl, the old college try. Sadly, proponents didn't respect their neighbors, and opponents didn't have much tolerance for their neighbors. I predict restrictions. Personally, I don't have a clear, philosophical guide on the issue. On one hand, I want people to enjoy unencumbered liberty. On the other, I respect the right to the peaceful enjoyment of one's property. 

Of course there are ancillary issues such as litter, nervous animals, safety and PTSD, but the crux of the concern surrounds peace of the home. Littering is illegal. Justifying local ordinances for the psychological welfare of animals is just bizarre. Saying fireworks are dangerous is a fact, but safety is a matter of personal responsibility - play with fire, you could get burned. PTSD should be managed like other human conditions (and maybe we should blame our interventionist foreign policies of the past half century). However, before we take drastic measures to reduce new freedoms, we need to explore the postulates of the current law. First, it is new, people are going to explore pyrotechnic freedoms. As a result, there are many more fireworks being lit than ordinary. Second (and related to the first), people are more willing to spend disposable income to enjoy the freedoms. Third, people may not be fully familiar with state law which is somewhat arbitrary and unnecessarily complex. 

So yes, there were times the fireworks infringed on rights to peaceful enjoyment. There were times fireworks were lit at illegal hours of the night. But before limiting the freedom, we need to recognize the extraneous circumstances.  Once the initial excitement has been flushed from the system, a more modest exercise of freedom is expected. To address the concerns, I would be willing to reduce the launch period and set consistent hours. We also need to be more vigilant and pursue violators in the sky. This is the balance, and neither the proponents or opponents will be happy. Another way to measure compromise is the relative unhappiness of the parties in the final outcome. 

MAYOR POSITION

For 129 years Cedar Falls employed a part-time mayor. In 1971, the position became full-time so the mayor could make a living and earn benefits. Since that time, we have seen good political leadership at most times. Administrative leadership has had mixed results. The fact is, Cedar Falls has been operating with a weak mayor since I was born. Mayoral duties have been rightfully delegated to professional staff members.

In some minds, the mayor's position holds a mythical status. I don't know if our magic is attributable to the mayor or many dedicated, civic-minded citizens and our built-in assets. Because I don’t believe in sorcery, I lean to the latter.