Anyone Been Nabbed for Fireworks? [PHIL-OSOPHY]

I haven't heard of many arrests around here for selling or setting off fireworks. Have you?

They're being sold out of vans and car trunks for triple the original cost. Street vendors are making a very nice profit on the fireworks and their customers have plenty of loot to blow on them, even though unemployment is around 15 percent.

Are you wondering why so many people have extra mad money to splurge on Roman candles, ground spinners, aerials and cherry bombs during this COVID-19 business downturn?

I'm guessing they're dipping into their unemployment money.

I have asked quite a few young people why this year there are so many explosions going on at all hours of the night. The answers range from the poor little darlings are hashtag bored out of their minds and they're pissed, and they want to just blow off some steam during these stressful times. Plus it's all the rage to do right now.

When I was a kid, the thing to do was ring someone's doorbell and then quickly run to a place they couldn't see us and watch the homeowner get boiling mad as they'd yell that they were calling the cops on us hoodlums. Today, they are driving into quiet neighborhoods, lighting off a barrage of fireworks late at night, and then speeding away.

So I suppose since they can't congregate at bars, parties on the beach, movies and festivals, the next best mode of entertainment for them is disturbing the peace. It's quarantine related with a combination of frustration and boredom.

In other words, it's ultimately our fault.

In the meantime, a Providence, Rhode Island task force arrested 14 people for fireworks-related offenses. Have there been any busts in New Bedford or around the SouthCoast yet?

Phil Paleologos is the host of The Phil Paleologos Show on 1420 WBSM New Bedford. He can be heard weekdays from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. Contact him at phil@wbsm.com and follow him on Twitter @PhilPaleologos. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.