Montanans have gained a national reputation for their steadfast protection of privacy and property rights.

That means it's not likely a city government here will condemn someone's home to make room for a private business, as the U.S. Supreme Court recently allowed.

But while we might like the idea of government not limiting our freedom, we must consider the responsibility that comes with this freedom.

It's not a good idea to pile up junk and refuse next to your neighbor's well manicured front yard.

It's not a good idea to race your car through quiet neighborhoods where families expect their kids will be safe from danger.

And it's not a good idea to fire off explosives at all hours of the day and night just because you think you can.

The right to set off fireworks has nothing to do with patriotism — in fact, the right doesn't exist at all. City, county, state and federal laws restrict the sale and use of fireworks to protect the public from harm and to control the nuisance fireworks create.

Every year someone gets seriously injured by fireworks. Fingers, eyes and eardrums are often destroyed. In times of drought, grass fields and forests catch fire from falling rockets.

But the effects reach further, penetrating the walls of our homes, terrifying pets, keeping working folks awake at all hours, shattering the peace people have a reasonable right to expect.

It shouldn't be asking too much for people to at least obey the law and use fireworks in the correct places and at the correct time. But they can go one step further and think about their neighbors.

That's what privacy and property rights is really all about.