Kids Will Be...Monsters?

I've been reading about that Long Island couple who were taken to court earlier this week over their wilding little girls who are so loud and obnoxious; the neighbors felt they had no other choice but to get litigious after several prior complaints to both the family and local cops.

William and Rachel Poczatek were taken to court after neighbors launched several complaints about the hysterical noises their two daughters cause while playing in the family's backyard pool, one of those above ground jobs; not what you might think for Long Island, but that's beside the point. Apparently the children, ages 5 and 11 get completely out of hand while playing Marco Polo. My first thought was "kids will be kids, what's the neighbors' problem?" That's the kinda guy I am see, always giving the benefit of the doubt to the youngsters. Yissiree. But my deep suspicions about how these kids might have exacted such an outcry were confirmed yesterday when I saw a news broadcast where the neighbors played a tape of the little banshees. In 30 minutes of the recording, those kids nearly broke the tape recorder and one comes away with the impression that a little of it, perhaps is being done to egg the neighbors on. This was NOT typical child-like hoots and hollers, it was outright screams and screeching at the very high decibels a 5 and 11 year old can put out: And in my book, an 11 year old is simply too long in the tooth to carry-on the way that one does, more reason to suspect the kids might be yanking the neighbors' chain with passive encouragement from mommy and gumba daddy.

This reminded me of before I left New Orleans and the way families with young children began lining Mardi Gras parade routes with tall painting ladders which they'd modify with kid seats at the top. As if that weren't bad enough, they'd taken to chaining them together in some twisted spirit of people-with-kids solidarity as to block out other people from standing in front of them, thus preventing the offspring from catching more beads and such. Crazy stuff, don't you agree?

Hey, I LOVE kids, especially little bitty ones, but I'm a firm believer that your rights end where mine begin. Seeing the transition my own neighborhood is going through and how many more young, upscale families gentrification is bringing, it's apparent every day that much of the new breed of mommies and daddies simply don't care if they block the sidewalks with SUV-sized baby strollers and decide to roll them right into the cramped coffee shops and cafes around the neighborhood. Apparently the new mantra of parenting is 'to hell with you, I've got kids'. Attention: squeezing out a puppy doesn't entitle you to special social rights and privileges. Hiding behind the battle cry of "it's for the CHILDREN!" is getting quite old.

I see this issue reaching class-war proportions. I've picked my side and have my water gun and sling shot at the ready.

Posted by JD on June 22, 2007 9:15 AM