There will be no fireworks at Mount Rushmore this Independence Day because the government finds it too risky — but perhaps what they’re really worried about is an outbreak of patriotism.
For the second year in a row, the National Park Service has denied a request from South Dakota to put on a fireworks display at the monument on July 4, Fox News reported.
The display was eliminated from South Dakota tradition in 2009 because of the stated fire risks but returned in 2020 and included an appearance by former President Donald Trump.
Leftists were sufficiently rankled by Trump’s appearance during a pandemic, though no cases of the virus could be traced to the event, and the event has yet to return.
Now in a letter to the South Dakota Department of Tourism, Michelle Wheatley, superintendent of the Mount Rushmore National Memorial, cited concerns such as potential pollution, wildfire risk, visitor restrictions to the park for the event and offense to tribal groups in the area to bar the display this year.
“After careful consideration, the NPS has determined that we are unable to grant your request for this permit to hold a special event with fireworks at the Memorial,” the March 14 letter stated.
“Based on the information provided in the application, we have determined that multiple such criteria are present for the requested event, each of which would be independently sufficient to deny the request for a permit,” it added.
Of course, no prohibition of anything enjoyable would be complete with the requisite nod to how it would further oppress marginalized groups.
“Fireworks are viewed by multiple Tribes as an adverse effect to the traditional cultural landscape,” Wheatley stated, citing a Tribal Cultural Survey conducted in May 2021 that revealed “ample documented opposition from the Tribes to the 2020 event.”
The NPS also claimed fireworks “present a clear and present danger to the public health and safety” — though the 2020 display went off without injury — and “result in significant conflict with existing...
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Proposed: return all federal lands to the states in which they are located
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