So I'm walking out of my shop today and a gentleman pulls into the driveway. I welcome him and find out he works over at the local Rod and Gun club in our area. He begins to tell me that some township planning manager who lives on a lake about 7 miles away is proposing a noise ordinance because he doesn't like the sound of the boats going fishing and the party's on his lake. Here's the kicker, he added a provision for firearms! He wants to prohibit the discharge of firearms on all residential property in Somerset Township and have multiple restrictions on fireworks. His ordinance has a limit of 55 decibels of noise on any given edge of your property. I was aghast!
I have gone to battle, got with all my neighbors and we are going to the board meeting tomorrow at 7pm to voice our opposition. We have 5 households going to speak out. My neighbors are all contacting the people they know to get more. We live here for a reason, we like freedom. The "lake people" are mostly from the bigger city's and use it as vacation homes and some retire here or decide to just live there year round. At 55 decibels you couldn't run a farm tractor for Pete's sake.
I've absolutely had it with infringements on personal freedom and I intend to make it plainly clear that I have had it. Noise is a funny thing, a car door can annoy someone if the wrong person is closing the door. There are times when noise is out of hand and seems to infringe on others but that line must be approached delicately and in a focused manner. Broad laws that kill people's ways of life and personal freedom do not float with me.
