Noisy neighbors

Dear Editor: Last night, the neighbors had another loud party, which consisted of seven hours of nonstop, top-of-the voice roaring, yelling, and screaming (by about 30 people) coupled with loud music and lots of drinking. There was no concern whatsoever for all the surrounding neighbors.

At this point, if I were to move from Downey, or just plain die, I believe all my neighbors would say, “Finally, thank goodness and good riddance, now we can go back to making all the noise we want and not worry about someone calling the police.”

This is the kind of society that is now routinely prevalent in today’s world. No one any longer has a right to not have their nerves shattered on a daily basis from all the various kinds of noise. The ability to make noise is now of more concern, more important, and certainly has more priority than anyone’s right or desire to quietness.

Yes, the ability to make noise has now been converted into the right to make noise – simply because you can get away with it. Too many people will make as much noise as they want to for as long as they want until someone “forces” them to stop. Nowadays if you have a dog, none of your neighbors any longer have a right to quietness. (If you own a motorcycle, you now have the right to disturb hundreds and possibly thousands every day that you use it.)

If and when someone complains about noise these complainers are now considered the bigger nuisances in our societies. The fact that someone’s nerves are so shattered and traumatized that they want to die is of no concern to many people anymore. (Notice, especially, that the noise makers are not willing or responsible to pay for any treatment necessary for the shattered nerves of others.) Indeed, their biggest concerns are instead the selfish, greedy creation of loudness, and the uncaring traumatizing of so many of us (and many dogs) who are not designed to withstand such an onslaught of noise.

If the mayor or the chief of police were parked out in front of your house, you would either not do it at all, or else you would greatly tone it down. So I ask, why is it when people want to have a loud party that these people cannot be responsible and rent an indoor facility where the noise would be contained? Why is it that when people have visitors, for any reason, that they think it is now magically OK to convert the neighborhood into an outdoor nightclub? In the meantime, all those who live within earshot of this noise can just plain go to hell if they don’t like it?

I now truly feel that if the noisemakers could, they would round up all the quiet ones and put us on a spaceship and gladly deport us off the planet – because we the quiet ones are such a thorny hindrance to their lack of consideration for others! May I ask, how is all this noisemaking an example of living pursuant/according to the golden rule? Would it be OK if early the next morning I put a set of loud speakers on the fence and blasted out the same volume level of sound for five to six hours? Wouldn’t that be living the golden rule just as much as the loud party from the previous night? Where is the difference or distinction between the aggravation caused by these two activities?

I am truly alarmed and greatly disappointed by such a great display of disrespect and so much routine acceptance of inconsideration for others. That myself and people like me (who aren’t disturbing anyone) are also now considered to be the unreasonable ones and the more problematic members of our societies is truly disturbing.

Am I truly alone in the way that I think, or should I just take a long walk off a short pier?

Danny Wright

Downey

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Published: Jan. 8, 2015 - Volume 13 - Issue 39