Scott’s Scoop – Column by Scott Dinger
In chapter nineteen of the book of Leviticus, there is a statement about loving your neighbor. My wife and I are now past our twentieth year in our neighborhood, and I admit it’s taken me that long to come to terms with this requirement of me by God. Which got me thinking at length about many of my actions and how I have been disobedient to this commandment and have only now begun to work towards being less stiff necked.
Let’s discuss pollution. Broadly thought of as applying to its effects and affects on the majority of societies of the world, environment pollutants are typically what comes to mind. However, I wish to convey a few subtle, but just as prevalent and bothersome types that may not be thought about as much, especially as they relate to the ways in which these pollutants affect us in an up-close and personal way. My hope is that anyone reading this will do a self-check, assess their own habits, and consider minimizing their own pollution output and therefore better love their neighbors.
Noise pollution. Loud exhaust. Every morning during the spring, summer, and fall months before it’s too cold to ride, someone on the east shoreline of Hauser Lake operates a motorcycle of some sort as a daily method of transport to and from our community. I live over a mile away and yet, due to the geography of our community, this motorcycle sounds as if it is directly in my driveway. Early morning hours, before society wakes up en masse, this bike is loud. Annoyingly and illegally so. Modified exhaust is illegal. Legality aside, it is inconsiderate and is a ‘love thy neighbor’ fail. Scientifically speaking, sound is energy, and during late night and early morning, the majority of society is still inactive. There is less sound energy being produced by humanity, so the louder or higher energy sounds dominate the expanse of the atmosphere. As humanity awakens and our sound energy output increases, the sound waves crash into one another and in a weird way, cancel each other out. An interesting phenomena.
Consider people who think the rest of us like the exact same music at the same volume as they do. Why do we have to feel your bass in our bones as we sit five cars away in traffic? Why do ski boat operators think it’s necessary to have loud music blaring on a small lake while the majority of your fellow man at the same lake are there enjoying, or trying to, the sounds of nature; the wind on the water, leaves rustling in the trees along the shore, or the call of birds? If you are one of those neighbors, I beg you to reconsider your own personal level of noise output.
Barking dogs. I have five dogs. They bark. I have come to realize that this is a nuisance to my non-dog owning neighbors. I invested in bark collars and a couple stationary rechargeable dog barking reduction devices. It has been remarkable in reducing the barking and no doubt acted as an outward loving of my neighbors. If your dog barks at the slightest noise, that’s cool. But when it becomes incessant, then it’s worth investing in one of these.
Light pollution. One of my neighbors is also a dog aficionado. It is by nature a dog bred to bark for sentry purposes. Having found success with the barking device, I took it upon myself to mount it in a place on my property where it would lessen the neighbor dogs’ overzealous barking towards me and my family at each passing. The device has a bright blue light on it that denotes operational status. Little did I know that during the night this light was bright enough to be a nuisance to my neighbors. Nuisance light from my property, or yours, is illegal when it shines upon your neighboring property. Did you know that? I did, because I used to practice the enforcement of the law and I had inadvertently been violating. Once my neighbors made me aware that my light was bothersome, I realized my need to love more effectively and removed the light. It was the moment that provided the impulse to pen this column.
Have you ever thought about how it’s become harder and harder to see the stars at night? We used to need them to navigate. Now, bright lights along roads, electronic billboards, yard lights, porch lights, and business signs along property boundaries have become excessive and all but obliterate the night sky. When we moved here twenty plus years ago, I used to stand outside on my property at night and marvel at the night sky. I realized how much I had missed it in between growing up in a very rural area and my time working in a big metro area where there was no night sky. Our community has grown significantly and nothing has been done to create awareness about light pollution, and the night sky is dwindling with each passing moment. I never run lights on my property at night. This is for loving reasons, but is also tactically driven. I encourage the reader to be more considerate of your neighbors and assess the level of light you and your property emit onto other property around you. It may not be welcomed or ‘loved’ by your neighbor. Plus, it’s a waste of energy. There are easy solutions to minimize this that don’t require genius level thinking.
On a majority level, some townships have enacted strict exterior lighting rules that work very well towards reducing this pollution. I have visited a few of these towns. I could actually see the night sky. It was an interesting experience. The citizenry there was also a case study in the idea of neighborly love.
Leviticus, for those less inclined or aware, speaks to God-given laws. Much of the laws of western society emanate from these Levitical laws. I put on my pants like anyone else. I am just as guilty. The point is in making the effort to do more each day on the love part than the obedience part. Because the loving part cancels out or overrides the obedience part to which all of us are cursed with.
Consider today, and everyday, how all of us can love a little better in a neighborly way.
