A “dramatic” 600-word letter put into mailboxes of houses in a ritzy Sydney suburb has divided the community.
Posting to discussion website Reddit, a user shared a shocking note that they had received regarding a house in their elite eastern Sydney suburb of Vaucluse having loud parties.
Vaucluse is considered one of Sydney’s wealthiest suburbs, with some sources reporting that individuals in this area bring in an average income of $197,886.
Houses in this suburb are sold for an average of $9 million, while renting in the area will set you back an average of $3,000 a week, according to realestate.com.au.
In the emotionally-charged letter, the person claimed the house in question was guilty of having two “very loud and disruptive” parties with an “obnoxiously high bass from the subwoofer”.
“If you didn’t hear them, then consider yourself lucky,” the resident wrote.
“You either have a very well insulated house or are a light sleeper!
“On both nights I requested of the occupants that the volume be lowered … this had, if anything, the opposite of the desired effect.
“The music, as well as singing/shouting and general raucous behaviour, was loudest between 12-2.30am.”
The writer of the letter said they believed the partygoers to be “young adults” and thought that their parents may have be away while the parties occurred.
They added that they ended up calling the police, however they did not show up due to attending “higher priority” issues.
After this, the writer went on to slam the young people’s behaviour and even stated that it represented the decline of future generations.
“This sort of behaviour is selfish and disgraceful,” the started.
“It’s symptomatic of the degradation in values, and the utter self-entitlement and disregard for the wellbeing of anyone but oneself.
“A narcissistic, ‘self as the centre of the universe’ mentality. Which is becoming increasingly prevalent amongst the current generation/s, as is evident the world over (at least in Western ‘civilisation’).”
They affirmed that this was not a case of “the old angry guy yelling at the kids to get off his lawn”.
“How about just some common decency? Consideration, kindness, empathy, respect, compassion, sensitivity,” they wrote.
“You know, decency. It used to be a thing. Not to mention, law – cutoff for loud music is 12am as I’m sure you know.
“Even so, it would be pushing the limits of decency beyond reason for one household to have two consecutive nights of loud music ending at 12am – let alone 2.30am!”
The writer went on to explain that he did not want to “fix the world” but wanted all the neighbours to “do their part” to help bring the parties to a stop.
“No, we’re not going to fix the world by addressing this little problem here in Vaucluse,” they said.
“But how about a grassroots project to do our part? Or how about just ensuring that we can live in peace and harmony with one another, which I’m sure if what practically everyone wants.
“That, and a decent’s night sleep!
“I’m submitting a police report, and it would really help if I had some corroboration and input from the local community.”
They asserted that this was not a movement aimed to stop parties altogether, but added this it was a “unique” situation and “they alone” would be highlighted in his report.
“This isn’t in any way an attempt to curtail parties or celebrations in general,” they wrote.
“The blatant entitlement and disregard exhibited by this particular household is something quite unique, and they alone will be the subject of the report, (a) to send a clear message that this is unacceptable. (b) as a deterrent for future incidents of a similar nature, and (c) that the event is documented, along with the input of the locals, which is of course crucially relevant.”
The writer warned that if this behaviour turned into a “pattern” it would help to have past incidents recorded.
“It would be great if we could get this done asap,” they urged.
“Please don’t succumb to the ‘bystander effect; let’s stand up for what’s right.”
The long letter divided people in the comments, with some saying it is “dramatic” sounds like it is coming from a “bored Boomer” while others agree with his sentiments.
“Dude should have just moved to the other side of his mansion,” one quipped.
“Have you heard how mansions eco though? Poor man probably had to take refuge in the cabana by the pool,” another joked.
“He’s circulating a letter to his neighbours like a head teacher does to their students, setting up his own anonymous Crimestoppers line in the process,” one Reddit user added.
“Obviously people are going to laugh at the dramatic nature of it. Plus, he’s just highlighted how Boomers think of themselves as superior to the younger generations – how they’re so perfect, well-mannered blah blah blah.”
Others sympathised with the person who wrote the letter, saying that loud parties are “always annoying” and that people should “be more considerate”.
“Yes the letter might be a bit dramatic but at least he’s doing something about it,” one wrote.
“Isn’t that what we advise the multitude of people who post here with noise complaints? We tell them to do something about it – talk to the neighbour, call the police, file a report so there’s a record if it keeps happening etc.”
“The letter/approach is a bit much but noise at night is annoying,” another said.
“The fact there were two parties is what makes me sympathetic.”
The NSW Environment Protection Authority states that noisy parties should be wrapped up by 10am on weeknights and 12am on weekends.