Loud Motorcycles and Children

There are many situations where trying to start a dialogue would be the way I would go but (once again) this situation seems so intrusive and outright dangerous that I know I would have called in the pOlice. We live in a situation where there is an authority. And yeah being a child of the 60's way back then they were the enemy but fast forward to now....there are times where that seems like the right call to be making.

There are many situations where trying to start a dialogue would be the way I would go but (once again) this situation seems so intrusive and outright dangerous that I know I would have called in the pOlice. We live in a situation where there is an authority. And yeah being a child of the 60's way back then they were the enemy but fast forward to now....there are times where that seems like the right call to be making.

I agree with the anonymous police call in this case. You have to live with these people near you, and probably see them every day. You may even have to rely on them for assistance one day. It's important to maintain friendly, or at at any rate neutral relations with your neighbors. These people are not personal friends, and you don't know how reasonable or unreasonable they might be when you personally interfere with them, and even more, with their kids.

And in the end, you are helping them, even if they may not appreciate that. Of course you need no excuse for correcting their intrusive, insensitive and dangerous behavior.

Maybe at some point you will all become great pals. Then, one day over a few beers you might say, "By the way, remember 2 years ago when the police came to give you all those tickets for your kids' motorbiking in the street and on the sidewalk? Well, hahaha, that was me! Need a refill?"

I agree with the anonymous police call in this case. You have to live with these people near you, and probably see them every day. You may even have to rely on them for assistance one day. It's important to maintain friendly, or at at any rate neutral relations with your neighbors. These people are not personal friends, and you don't know how reasonable or unreasonable they might be when you personally interfere with them, and even more, with their kids.

And in the end, you are helping them, even if they may not appreciate that. Of course you need no excuse for correcting their intrusive, insensitive and dangerous behavior.

Maybe at some point you will all become great pals. Then, one day over a few beers you might say, "By the way, remember 2 years ago when the police came to give you all those tickets for your kids' motorbiking in the street and on the sidewalk? Well, hahaha, that was me! Need a refill?"

camaysar,

Well said. I don't know how reasonable or unreasonable the parents may be, but I don't owe it to them to find out. The posts on this matter have been very helpful.

camaysar,

Well said. I don't know how reasonable or unreasonable the parents may be, but I don't owe it to them to find out. The posts on this matter have been very helpful.

pokersloper wrote: camaysar,

Well said. I don't know how reasonable or unreasonable the parents may be, but I don't owe it to them to find out. The posts on this matter have been very helpful.

Pokersloper, another thought... they certainly didn't ask your permission before they broke the relative peace and quiet of your neighborhood. The fact is, many people do not understand that there are others who consider noise a pollutant, and a serious, invasive annoyance. The regular offenders range from the people who park outside the deli at 3AM with their car radios blaring, all the way down to those who blast their headphones on buses and trains so we can add the rhythmic "tsh-tsh-tshhhh..." as the unwanted accompaniment to our thoughts. (Personally, I never get on a subway without those foam ear-plugs, which seem to cut just the right frequencies. As a professional musician, perhaps I'm on the extreme end here.)

To these selfish, clueless ones - even the biker-moms - our complaints are ludicrous. Any adults who allow their kids' motorbikes to blare for hours on end in a residential neighborhood are sure to have a blind spot in this regard, and will show zero sympathy with anyone who complains.

1st-streeters' idea of an anonymous warning is good, too. But it's ok if you've already cut to the chase and called 911.... this is about survival. I hope your problem is solved immediately!

pokersloper wrote: camaysar,

Well said. I don't know how reasonable or unreasonable the parents may be, but I don't owe it to them to find out. The posts on this matter have been very helpful.

Pokersloper, another thought... they certainly didn't ask your permission before they broke the relative peace and quiet of your neighborhood. The fact is, many people do not understand that there are others who consider noise a pollutant, and a serious, invasive annoyance. The regular offenders range from the people who park outside the deli at 3AM with their car radios blaring, all the way down to those who blast their headphones on buses and trains so we can add the rhythmic "tsh-tsh-tshhhh..." as the unwanted accompaniment to our thoughts. (Personally, I never get on a subway without those foam ear-plugs, which seem to cut just the right frequencies. As a professional musician, perhaps I'm on the extreme end here.)

To these selfish, clueless ones - even the biker-moms - our complaints are ludicrous. Any adults who allow their kids' motorbikes to blare for hours on end in a residential neighborhood are sure to have a blind spot in this regard, and will show zero sympathy with anyone who complains.

1st-streeters' idea of an anonymous warning is good, too. But it's ok if you've already cut to the chase and called 911.... this is about survival. I hope your problem is solved immediately!

camaysar,

Yes, the family does seem to have a "blind spot" about what is right and wrong. Unfortunately, I don't see this stopping without a few more phone calls to 311/911. This is a family that basically opens their garage door on the weekend, moves a living room's worth of furniture and motorcycles outside, and hangs out all day.

The more I think about it, the more I have to wonder about parents who encourage their ten year old to operate an illegal vehicle, on the sidewalk (which is illegal) without a license. You would think that one of the many adults in this family who were hanging out would have said, "Wait a minute, this isn't right."

By the way, I have spoken to neighbors, on rare occasion, about conduct. A few years back I was sitting on my front stoop, playing chess with my wife, and two neighborhood kids set up directly across from us and started pitching and hitting balls. We had become center field. I walked over to the kids and nicely asked them to move. They gave me the "This is a free country" speech. I explained to them that I was asking nicely and showing them respect by asking them to move in a nice manner. I even said to them that someday they would have girlfriends and wouldn't want their girlfriends to get smacked in the face with a ball. To their credit, they moved down the block. I think I handled it well, but the situations were totally different. They were not being supervised by any adults, let alone 7-8, so there was much less of a chance of parents feeling disrespected. And, there were no adults out there basically saying to them that setting up your baseball pitch and hit in front of a couple was okay.

And, a few months after 9/11 a group of about 8-10 teens were hanging out a few houses down and were setting off tons of fireworks. There were other kids (or adults) above them throwing fireworks out a second story window. Some of the fireworks were really, really loud. One neighbor came over and lost it on these kids after getting out of his car and watching his wife dive to the ground upon hearing a loud burst. I walked over and said that if I heard one more explosion, I was calling the police. The fireworks stopped.

Now, the thing is, this was probably stupid of me. I ended up watching my back for a few years because a pack of teens can be a dangerous thing. I knew most of their faces from the street and never had any other problem with them, but I think there were one or two who were really leading the firework charge this day. I should have just called the police because these kids were either unsupervised or poorly supervised, and were being wrong and dangerous on so many levels it is unbelievable.

So, the bottom line for me is, I would rather call 311 then feel that I have to watch my back because someone else has a "blind spot" about right and wrong.

camaysar,

Yes, the family does seem to have a "blind spot" about what is right and wrong. Unfortunately, I don't see this stopping without a few more phone calls to 311/911. This is a family that basically opens their garage door on the weekend, moves a living room's worth of furniture and motorcycles outside, and hangs out all day.

The more I think about it, the more I have to wonder about parents who encourage their ten year old to operate an illegal vehicle, on the sidewalk (which is illegal) without a license. You would think that one of the many adults in this family who were hanging out would have said, "Wait a minute, this isn't right."

By the way, I have spoken to neighbors, on rare occasion, about conduct. A few years back I was sitting on my front stoop, playing chess with my wife, and two neighborhood kids set up directly across from us and started pitching and hitting balls. We had become center field. I walked over to the kids and nicely asked them to move. They gave me the "This is a free country" speech. I explained to them that I was asking nicely and showing them respect by asking them to move in a nice manner. I even said to them that someday they would have girlfriends and wouldn't want their girlfriends to get smacked in the face with a ball. To their credit, they moved down the block. I think I handled it well, but the situations were totally different. They were not being supervised by any adults, let alone 7-8, so there was much less of a chance of parents feeling disrespected. And, there were no adults out there basically saying to them that setting up your baseball pitch and hit in front of a couple was okay.

And, a few months after 9/11 a group of about 8-10 teens were hanging out a few houses down and were setting off tons of fireworks. There were other kids (or adults) above them throwing fireworks out a second story window. Some of the fireworks were really, really loud. One neighbor came over and lost it on these kids after getting out of his car and watching his wife dive to the ground upon hearing a loud burst. I walked over and said that if I heard one more explosion, I was calling the police. The fireworks stopped.

Now, the thing is, this was probably stupid of me. I ended up watching my back for a few years because a pack of teens can be a dangerous thing. I knew most of their faces from the street and never had any other problem with them, but I think there were one or two who were really leading the firework charge this day. I should have just called the police because these kids were either unsupervised or poorly supervised, and were being wrong and dangerous on so many levels it is unbelievable.

So, the bottom line for me is, I would rather call 311 then feel that I have to watch my back because someone else has a "blind spot" about right and wrong.

Yes, I think as a general rule if you do not know the teen or the parents, just call the police. You simply want the problem solved with authority. If that is not taking the "high road" for Peace, Love, Harmony and Benign Justice, too bad... this isn't Mayberry. And the police, who normally do not recommend taking matters of law into your own hands, would no doubt also advise a call to 911.

Yes, I think as a general rule if you do not know the teen or the parents, just call the police. You simply want the problem solved with authority. If that is not taking the "high road" for Peace, Love, Harmony and Benign Justice, too bad... this isn't Mayberry. And the police, who normally do not recommend taking matters of law into your own hands, would no doubt also advise a call to 911.

Agreed. My general rule is: when in doubt, call the authorities. Mr. Met just likes to be controversial.

Agreed. My general rule is: when in doubt, call the authorities. Mr. Met just likes to be controversial.

i just wish they'd let me ride the bike. that thing looks FUN.