This week, two families I know were turned in, probably by neighbors, for doing minor projects on their house without a permit. Yes, they were in the wrong and yet … In 2021, a neighbor turned us in to the city for something a decade old, and the city came to take a look a couple years later.
My neighbors say the “EPA” has visited because somebody has anonymously reported them for “polluting.” The anonymous reports could’ve been saved via a friendly knock on the door to talk about it.
I think of these anonymous reporters as snipers. If somebody has an issue with me, come talk to me. I imagine they get a moment of joy and fleeting righteousness hurting somebody that they may have an issue with. Or they may be reporting someone they have never spoken to and feel powerful. If they have any idea what the process is like to go through the city, they might be a little kinder. The anonymous reporting system creates distress and distrust among neighbors.
I truly believe world peace begins at home: anonymous reporting; cloaked commenting on the Internet; bombing from the sky without looking at somebody’s eyes before you kill them — these are all parts of the same plague. It is creating a meaner world, and it may be the downfall of our fragile society. It reminds me of stories in Nazi Germany and Soviet-era Russia, when people reported their neighbors for hiding somebody while trying to save a life. One starts to be suspicious of everyone.
The funny thing is, the people who do the anonymous reporting, are they perfect? I would be shocked if they live by every single rule and completely stop at every stop sign and never do something outside of a boundary. If that perfect person exists, I sure would like to meet them. That said, the people doing anonymous calls to the city and EPA, have no real interest in world peace or exercising kindness towards neighbors so they aren’t perfect either.
I will add that I have asked for this letter to be anonymous, which is very funny to me given what it about. It’s a real life Catch-22. I want others to be transparent and communicate with one another. That said, I am fearful to attach my name here as I feel the need to protect myself. This goes back to the truth that being human and being in relationship with others is messy and risky while simultaneously being powerful, necessary, and wonderful. Perhaps, this letter can be a starting point for me and others to reach out and talk, and more importantly, listen.