The Town Board of Colonie is scheduled to review new noise ordinance legislation at 7PM tonight. Before I even go into the ridiculousness of this legislation, I'm going to propose to you that if the Town Board is being paid to be there tonight, that right there is how the first few tax dollars will be wasted on this circus show.
The Bill
I was trying to find a copy of the bill to link to here, but I can't seem to find it. If anyone else can find it, send me it and I'll get it in here.
In essence, the bill would result in a $50-$250 fine or JAIL TIME for breaking a new ordinance that restricts noise to 70 decibels during the day (7AM - 10PM) and 60 decibels at night.
The Problem
Well first, let's try to understand what this means in terms of real life.
- 70 Decibels = A Vacuum Cleaner
- 60 Decibels = Normal Conversation Between Adults
OK. So, maybe it's not so bad. After all, a vacuum cleaner is pretty loud, why would you need to be louder than that? "Those darn kids" will just have to keep their racket down.
Never mind the fact that I have spent a sizable amount on stereo equipment and have been waiting to be in a house to really use them as to not disturb neighbors residing in the same building. Even if that's not a problem, what about normal human emotions? What about reaction to pain?
Let's say I get in a heated argument and I start yelling about it. No, forget that, let's say someone in your house is vacuuming and you need to get their attention. That's illegal... because in order for them to be able to hear you, you'll have to make your voice louder than the vacuum cleaner.
Here's another situation: It's 10 PM and I'm out on my lovely back yard, talking friendly with neighbors, and my shin has an unfortunate run in with a patio chair. My normal human reaction to this situation would be to yell some obscenity and then get over it. No, not anymore. I can go to jail for that now.
Then there is the issue of this law getting abused. I respect police officers and understand that they protect and serve me, but they are also human beings and are subject to every flaw you and I are subject to. What if Joe Shmow gets pulled over and the police officer decides he doesn't like the look of him or doesn't like his attitude. (You're kidding yourself if you really believe it never happens. This is the world we live in, for better or worse.) All the cop has to do to give himself the right to arrest the guy is evoke an emotional response. It's not as hard as you might think either.
Yeah, now you think I'm some kind of crazy conspiracy theorist. No, I don't expect the police to act like that, I really don't think it would happen much at all. But it COULD happen. And I don't like that.
Would it mean taking away people who deserve to be? Such as "domestic disputes" that are the only real evidence of a man who beats his wife. Yeah, I'm sure you'd get a bunch of them on it. But all you're gonna get, max, is the ability to take the guy away for a little while and send him back angrier than he already was.
We're human beings, we have human emotions and sometimes they're really really loud. Good! Let them be loud! If I've learned anything in life it's that nothing ever really goes away. If you don't deal with your emotions (anger included) properly, then you better be ready for an explosion, cause it's coming whether you like it or not.
I get sad, I get mad, I get upset, and I get frustrated. Sometimes the only way to deal with something is just to just freakin' scream. I should have that right.
It's as if that crazy Nazi library individual went nuts, left the library, and has decided that not only the library, but the whole town should SHHH! You know the person I'm talking about. The one who's EVERYWHERE in the library telling you to shut up. The one you're pretty sure doesn't even work there but has nothing else to do with their life? Yeah, "that guy". They're behind this law, I'm sure of it.
Still not painting a vivid enough picture for you?
Here's a thousand words to help you out:
So say goodbye to family picnics, graduation parties, or even singing Kumbaya by the fire too loudly without the fear of being criminally charged. Also bid adieu to well-kept landscaping as lawn mowers spew out 90 decibels, but that's nothing compared to the ridiculous 110 decibels that chainsaws pollute your community with. We'll have to let lawns become weed gardens and downed tree's become weed garden ornaments.
We're either gonna end up with more people who are affected by this for no good reason OR you're gonna end up with people who are just gonna fight it on the premise that the ordinance is ridiculous and get away with it anyway... because it IS ridiculous, rendering it unenforceable.
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1 comment:
So without further background, my thinking is this: it's a questionable recasting of a well-understood boundary in the suburban social contract. People have a right to do stuff, neighborhoods have a right to peace and quiet.
If it sounds like it can't be blanket-enforced, then it's probably an enforcement tool. We agree there are "right" times to use it. I wouldn't expect to see many blatant misapplications of the law, or it wouldn't stay on the books long; but you certainly can't rule out a few.
Noise regs, like liquor licensing and curfews, are often used to control night-life, and shut down social gatherings the local government finds to be immoral or inappropriate. It may suck, but it's part of what makes towns distinct from cities. What precisely they mean to do by extending this to the daytime, I don't know.
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