Allen Ray McGrew, 41, was found laying in the road. He put a firework on his head, and it exploded while on his head, causing massive head injuries, officials said.

His wife, Paige McGrew, said her husband had been drinking since 6 p.m.

See, Florida? It’s not just you. Americans get drunk and do insanely stupid shit everywhere else in the country too.

  • originalucifer@moist.catsweat.com
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    4 months ago

    sure, but thats no reason to just not try anything. maybe if it were treated as a healthcare problem instead of a policing issue.

    of course, that would require the united states to actually care about its human citizens enough to pay for their well-being.

    • Flying Squid@lemmy.worldOP
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      4 months ago

      Honestly, the only thing I can think of that could work would be what happened with cigarettes- a combination of significantly rising prices and an alternative to the original addiction (vaping, which is, at least in theory, safer). Some people claim that legal cannabis fills the second goal, but it’s a hell of a lot more expensive than cheap beer, at least in Illinois. And good luck convincing beverage outlets into pricing people out of cheap beer.

        • Flying Squid@lemmy.worldOP
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          4 months ago

          So unlike what happens with every other such tax, like on cannabis or tobacco? Because none of them get spent on good things.

            • Flying Squid@lemmy.worldOP
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              4 months ago

              So you want the money wasted this time too?

              Again, cannabis and tobacco taxes don’t end up being spent on what they claim they will be spent on. They go into slush funds and get parceled out on bullshit.

              If they did things like help with education and such, I’d agree. But they don’t.

              • Wiz@midwest.social
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                4 months ago

                Tax money is generally not “wasted”. It goes towards services for the state. So, yeah - I would not mind if there were additional taxes placed on fireworks to go into the state’s coffers, to come back to me as road work or universities.