Dear readers:
While I certainly agree something needs to be done about loud car stereos and motorcycles, I think that city hall forgot about two other noise polluters: car alarms and ice-cream trucks!
I used to live across from the McDonald's in Bay View, and in addition to loud stereos, I had to put up with car alarms going off at LEAST 5 times A DAY. That's in addition to the alarms of the cars that actually live on my block! Sometimes I would have to call management at McDonald's to ask one of their patrons to turn off their alarm, as it was going off for the past 15 minutes! You have to wonder how effective car alarms are when they go off with such regularity that NO-ONE, much less the alarm owners themselves, go to the window to check on their car.
Concerning ice-cream trucks: While it certainly can be annoying when a car goes "boom-boom" down the street, it usually passes in 2-10 seconds. Those damn ice-cream trucks can be heard 2-3 blocks away as they crawl through your neighborhood blaring "Pop Goes the Weasel", or "The Entertainer" over and over for the next 10 minutes.
I would encourage every citizen fed up with these other noise polluters to take down license plates and call the police non-emergency number to report them. Which brings me to another problem I have with the city's plan---it requires no proof. Someone with a personal grudge against you could call the police without the cops actually witnessing any violation.
Down with "Pop Goes the Weasel"!!!
Rick Eells
