eThoughts : More About Fundamentals

Part of the series It’s All Been Said Before™ (© 2006), a division of Book-In-A-Drawer Publications™.

Perhaps the concept that protecting another’s space is to protect our own (remembering that consideration for both starts with consideration of others) is one fundamental rule of civility. Yet a look at so many daily doings between people reveals a truckload of trespass. Taking a look at that trespass might be illuminating.

Some of what appears below are examples of trespass that occur as a result of ignorance, some because of negligence, some because of deliberate meanness. Some are clearly ridiculous, some are a lot tougher to solve. But all are trouble and all are uncivil and discourteous to one degree or another.

If we own dogs, it is not just the dogs we need to consider, it is our neighbors. Habitually barking dogs are dogs not being paid attention to and that barking is an infringement upon the space of others—decidedly an uncivil and discourteous act. The same is true if those dogs run loose.

If we own any kind of animal whose noise invades the peace of others (do we need roosters or giant exotic birds, so bored out of their minds that all that is left to do is raise hell?), that is an uncivil and discourteous act to others.

If we ride ATVs up and down our neighborhoods or even on our own property—especially into the night, or early in the morning, or most of all day—when they have little or no noise suppression, that is an uncivil and discourteous act.

If we play our music loud enough to penetrate another’s space, that is an uncivil and discourteous act.

If we talk loudly enough or fail to put our cell phones on etiquette mode while in public, those are uncivil and discourteous acts.

Those are some examples of noise trespass. Some noise, like construction or maintenance work (heavy machinery to lawnmowers and leaf blowers, etc) are transitory and cannot be automatically listed as uncivil or discourteous—some noise is just the result of taking care of business. There are hours of doing business and still we can make and use quieter machines.

There are other issues of trespass that are not so difficult to solve. For instance, if we own dogs and cats and do not neuter them and they wander and mate (or even when male cats spray on other than their owner’s property), that is decidedly an uncivil and discourteous act to others—not to mention hard on the lives of canines and felines. If our outdoor lights illuminate the property of others, that is an uncivil and discourteous act. If we drive the roads and do not announce our intentions and do not create spaces, those are uncivil and discourteous acts.

Then there are some issues that are a mixture of simple and difficult to fix. For example, if we pollute the environment, that is a decidedly uncivil and discourteous act. Yet we have to make the distinction between the lunatics who dump trash in open spaces, toss stuff out of their cars, smoke around others, etc. and the many of us who pollute because we have not yet found a viable solution to our energy needs.

Here is a pretty thorny trespass, not so easily addressed at times: If we foist our beliefs (as in philosophy, religion, or politics) upon another, we are engaging in decidedly uncivil and discourteous acts.

This is not meant to be an exhaustive list. The point is that it is not up to those who are being trespassed upon to watch out for the rights of the trespassers, it is the responsibility of those doing the trespassing to be considerate and aware of their own encroachments.

It is clear there are some issues like the pollution from energy usage or the sometimes delicate line between personal and public belief that are not so easily fixed. But having difficult issues does not mean we have to ignore basic ones. That which we can more easily do, let’s do, that which is a bit more complicated, let’s try and find civil and considerate solutions. It is shear foolishness to focus upon saving the world while we do not even attend to basic civility and consideration in our lives, whether it is in our neighborhoods, on our roads, in our schools, at work, or wherever.

What else can we do? Unfortunately, laws and enforcement are still a necessity because there are so many so concerned with their own space that they cannot see, or don’t care to see, their trampling of another’s space. So, one thing we can do when it comes to public office or public service is to vote for and help people who know these basic principles and who will support, create, and have the means to enforce laws that prohibit the many faces of trespass. This is not to advocate a police state—in a civil and considerate society, good laws serve as a reminder to good citizens, while the enforcement of good laws are reserved for those who just couldn’t care less about civility.

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