ArticlesThe law is a not a surgeon’s scalpel, cutting away society’s ills. It’s an axe.
So, on the spectrum of morally good, past acceptable and tolerable, politically incorrect, unacceptable through to downright evil, the law can only really pick off acts on the extreme end. There is much that is socially unacceptable and morally wrong that is not illegal.
Another way of looking at things is statistically. If you were to do something that might inconvenience others – such as, say, making a loud noise – the number of people you would inconvenience depends on your location and the time of day. If you were to make a loud noise at 3am in a built-up area, you might wake dozens of people. At 3pm, you might only wake two or three. At what point should the law cut in and say it is unacceptable?
Around here, the law-makers have conservatively drawn a line in the sand. Before 7:30am, people operating loud machinery in a built-up area are breaking the law. They will be swarmed by police, pepper-sprayed, cuffed and dragged into the cells to be brought before a judge at a more reasonable time of the morning. (I’m pretty sure that’s how it works; I have never done any act nearly so horrendous.)
After 7:30am, the law-makers have reasonably declared that they won’t act, for fear of mistreating someone who is less morally culpable. But that doesn’t make it acceptable to make noise at 7:30am. That is just the beginning of the gray zone that extends at least up to 9am, and still has traces visible up to 10am.
So, this is a message to people with power tools, who wait until exactly 7:30am to fire them up: you may be law-abiding, but you are also evil.
There is another subclass of people – those who apparently are so anxious to start that they consider how long it would take for the SWAT team to arrive, and actually start just a few minutes before the deadline.
So, this is a message to the guy who fired up his hedge-trimmer outside my bedroom window at 7:27am this morning. You are an arsehole.
Sorry if this isn’t as clearly written as normal. I didn’t get much sleep last night for some reason.
Comment by Sunny Kalsi on January 10, 2012
“… an arsehole with very nice hedges”
Comment by David Shaw on January 10, 2012
I had a similar issue this morning. Interestingly less than 5km from your place the magic moment in time is 7:00am. Just after 7am the landscapers two doors up started up their machinery and so on and woke me. The killer was they only had an hour’s work and were gone by 8am, by which point there was no chance of getting back to sleep. Bastards.
Comment by Alan Green on January 11, 2012
If your rant wasn’t cathartic enough, the law allows you to seek a Noise Abatement Order 🙂
http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/noise/noiseabatement.htm
Comment by Richard Atkins on January 14, 2012
Sadly, it looks like the state laws say it’s 7am for any power tools and equipment – this brochure (in web form) seems to have some interesting details. Apparently a noise abatement order is meant to be a last resort (assuming the “When noise annoys” section is listed in order of desirability).
It’s missing some subtle details, such as even during the day, there’s a maximum dB level that you’re allowed to emit in a residential area, and that any drum kit will exceed that level when played normally. I’ve no idea how bands ever get any practice done. I can only assume most people never get around to contacting their local police about it?
Comment by Julian on January 14, 2012
Funny you should mention that, Richard. Last night I was talking about my drumming neighbour to another neighbour and to a drummer.
The drummer (from Victoria) explained that despite the fact that he practised during the day, and that the noise did not exceed the normal council limits, an elderly couple nearby complained to the local council, and he received a cease-and-desist letter, with threats of large fines.
Meanwhile, my neighbour and I both grumbled about our mutual noise-offender, but given that he only practises at “respectable” times of the day, neither of us ever took it any further. (The fact that I sleep weird hours makes this a bit more tense, but at some point that becomes my responsibility, not his.)
Comment by Greg on February 2, 2012
So people who do their job at a respectable time are evil because you want to slack off when everyone else is working. Sure.
Comment by Julian on February 2, 2012
Thank you so much, Greg, for showing that I am not arguing against a strawman. Your short reply contains so many of the false assumptions I am rallying against.
First, most people are not working at 7:27am. [citation-needed] In fact, many people – including those with 9-5 jobs, those who do late shifts, those who are ill, those who are retired, etc, are still asleep.
Second, sleeping is not slacking off. If is a basic human need.
Third, working at 7:27am is not ethically superior to working at 2am. It is not “less slack”. Some people seem unable to step back and consider this without baggage.
It is the inability to think about the diverse lifestyles of others, and to impose on them personal prejudices of “respectable” which is precisely what makes loud noise-makers at 7:27am arseholes.