A Different Kind of Neighborhood Watch on E. 7th Street
A Kensington reader passed on a note left by a nosy neighbor/concerned citizen (which is it, do you think?). It reads: “As I pass through my neighborhood, I find it necessary to remind my neighbors of their responsibility to keep our home values high by not only taking care of the inside of their homes…
A Kensington reader passed on a note left by a nosy neighbor/concerned citizen (which is it, do you think?). It reads: “As I pass through my neighborhood, I find it necessary to remind my neighbors of their responsibility to keep our home values high by not only taking care of the inside of their homes but also of their front areas. I have taken the liberty of grading each home and front areas. This letter is just a reminder and not intended to injure or insult anyone. I am sure we all want to maintain our property at the highest of standards and therby [sic] insuring that our property values remain high. This is a preliminary rating another [sic] will follow at a later date.” Luckily, there are many A’s. Our flummoxed reader writes, “I’m all for working to make our block look as beautiful as it can be, but really this is creepy! Don’t you think? Have you heard from others who have received similar letters?” We haven’t. Have you?
bxgrl,
I think the point is that too many people believe that upkeep of their home – specifically the exterior of their home, IS their personal business. In fact, its a public affair that has an effect on the people who walk by every day as well as those who visit your ‘hood. There is a limit on what you can lay claim to as ‘personal’ and expect people to respect those boundaries. I don’t advocate for laws or regulations, I advocate for a better awareness of the impact of the sensory environment, and what your responsibility is to help your neighbors maintain it.
Anecdotal like a mofo.
Did John Crow recently move to this block?
I think this person is totally out of line. Who appointed him the style police? If my house was on his block, I’d get a D minus. My limestone is a mess of peeling paint, and is arguably the shame of the block. I would love to get the facade done, but I don’t have the money.
Lessee…..get the facade done…..or pay the mortgage…..facade…mortgage….hmmmm. Guess what gets paid. I’m sure many people would like to do lots of things with their houses, but just can’t. Who needs some self appointed arbiter of taste to remind them that they aren’t as wealthy as their neighbors, or at the very least, they don’t have the same priorities as their neighbors? If my house offends you, you are more than welcome to pay for the upgrades.
Trash and basic cleanup have nothing to do with money, but still, who needs some busybody grading you? Creepy indeed.
bxgrl that’s a very sane and rational argument but this is just too “off-the-wall” for such a rational response
Isn’t The Twat going to comment on this? You know, property values going down, thus end of civilization as we know it, and some homoerotic comment about putting something up a bottomcap.
Wouldn’t it have been more productive if the letter writer had gotten neighbors together to talk about this? An insulting rating system and mildly threatening tone isn’t going to inspire his neighbors to do anything but be annoyed. He’s got his own criteria and who’s to say the the same as everyone else’s? Godwin’s Law notwithstanding, Lurker’s impression doesn’t seem far off the mark.
I love beautiful neighborhoods as much as the next person but how much do we want to allow neighbors to get into our personal business and how many more rules and regulations do we need to legislate to control every little thing?
11233…we don’t need a Babeland in Bed Stuy… we got the real thing over here!!!
maybe those PS people should visit a beer hall more often or the Pathmark so Flatbushwacker can pick them up!!!
I truly apologize for the multiple cross threaded discussion!!!
From wikipedia…
Godwin’s Law (also known as Godwin’s Rule of Nazi Analogies)[1] is an adage formulated by Mike Godwin in 1990. The law states:[2][3]
“As a Usenet discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Hitler approaches one.”
Godwin’s Law is often cited in online discussions as a deterrent against the use of arguments in the reductio ad Hitlerum form.
The rule does not make any statement whether any particular reference or comparison to Hitler or the Nazis might be appropriate, but only asserts that one arising is increasingly probable. It is precisely because such a comparison or reference may sometimes be appropriate, Godwin has argued[4] that overuse of Nazi and Hitler comparisons should be avoided, because it robs the valid comparisons of their impact. Although in one of its early forms Godwin’s Law referred specifically to Usenet newsgroup discussions,[5] the law is now applied to any threaded online discussion: electronic mailing lists, message boards, chat rooms, and more recently blog comment threads and wiki talk pages.