So I see we have yet another unenforceable bylaw on the books that people are going to ignore.
This behaviour by the city disturbs me. If I was a paranoid man, I'd think the city was going out of its way to see how far Sudburians can be pushed before openly committing civil disobedience.
The backlash over the garbage bylaw was frightening, as many Sudburians openly declared they refused to comply. As a result, the city had to back down because it was the will of the people.
Now the city informs us that there will be a city-wide permit required for any open air fires. Now this would had caused some grumbling if it wasn't for two aspects of a report.
One aspect was that having a fire was not a right annoys me to no end. This was something we have done since we figured out fire. That was poorly worded, to say the least.
The next thing that disturbed me and is probably the greatest source of outrage would be the fact that as a part of the process, authorities will visit the site and enter your home to ensure you are complying with provincial law on fire safety.
In other words, those who apply for the permit are granting the authorities the right to enter your home and inspect your property.
Since most people won't agree to that, I can expect that the defiance of this overreaching bylaw will be greater than the garbage bylaw.
Travis Morgan
Whitefish