Sorry lady, you can't jog here.

[Ellen Forradalom]

The other day I went for a 4 mile run with my dog which I planned on Google Maps. What Google did not tell me was that one street ran through an exceedingly fancy, tightly secured gated community on the hilltop. A teenager in the guard house told me I could not run down that street to the other side. The rich need to be protected from a middle-aged jogger with a dog!

Don't you fucking hate that shit? I know I do.

[GOPisEvil]

1. Elitist snobs!

How dare you even think to breathe their air and ruin their roads with your feet?

[Wapsie B]

2. I have a real problem with gated communities in general.

So I understand your ire.

[Ellen Forradalom]

3. This one is really in-your-face gated

Hilltop, guardhouse, heavy iron gates, the works. And with a through street! That's what's most galling to me.

[Gormy Cuss]

4. Your local municipality approved of that set-up.

That's the part that annoys me. As if the developers wouldn't have build the "enclave" without the guard station.

[Ellen Forradalom]

5. Possibly. Or perhaps they are not incorporated into the municipality.

SoCal is weird that way.

[Gormy Cuss]

8. Yeah, but that means the county approved of it.

California is totally weird that way -- I know, I live in an unincorporated county area. It's always held out as the excuse for that sort of exclusivity even when the development is surrounded by an incorporated city.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

26. AND your tax dollars are still keeping that road up...

...even though you are not allowed to run on it. Doesn't that PISS you off?
Duckie

[JVS]

6. What did you expect? The whole thing loses its point if they just let anyone through the gate.

[Ellen Forradalom]

7. Yah. Maybe they need to lose the damn gates.

Who lives in there, God?

On edit: Yes I knew perfectly well they wouldn't let me jog through but dammit it's a through street and I'm going to ask anyway!

[JVS]

9. The people who live there are customers who pay for the security of knowing that comings and...

goings are monitored and guests have reason to be there (i.e. an invitation). And while I doubt you would be considered a threat, making exceptions opens the whole can of worms that something like airline profiling does (jogging lady with dog ok, but how about these 3 teenagers with a van?) I'm sure that the people saying no to you already have rules given to them about not making exceptions and would face termination if caught doing so.

Now I'm not generally a fan of gated communities, but if I had a job where I often spent months out of town, I'd consider it as an option to prevent robbery of my vacant dwelling. Especially if I didn't know many people (i.e. house-sitters) in the area.

[Ellen Forradalom]

10. Yes, I know how it works.

That doesn't mean I have to like it.

[JVS]

12. fair enough

[Tuesday Afternoon]

11. God lives in a broken down shack

in the middle of the woods, lots of flowers though.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

23. Yes, but it has a gate.

with St Peter on guard 24x7.

And no, not just anyone can jog through.
:rofl:

[TommyO]

20. What is it with God, heaven, and gates anyway?

What kind of neighborhood does he live in that requires massive gates like that?

[Ellen Forradalom]

21. Next door to me, apparently

:-)

[Pierre.Suave]

27. He is such a nice guy that...

he has to keep out all of those people he loves so much he sends them to hell....

They are dying to get in...

[theredpen]

13. Watch this. You'll feel better.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=E73RM9gS7bU

[Ellen Forradalom]

14. That was hilarious

That did me a world of good. Thank you.

[zanne]

25. That wasn't at all funny.

A psychotic with a gun doesn't strike my funny bone. Sorry, but fantasies like that are sick.

[Ellen Forradalom]

28. Thank you for informing me

That you're better than me. Hope that makes you feel good.

[zanne]

31. I guess we just see humor in different things.

No need to get defensive--I wasn't criticizing you.

[baldguy]

15. and this...

http://youtube.com/watch?v=AbSRCjG-VLk

[Ellen Forradalom]

16. oh, AMEN!

I LOVE George Carlin. And he is so right about those fucking golf courses. We haven't got the water in SoCal for them.

[zanne]

30. Now that was funny. nt

[underpants]

33. Golf courses are the buffer zone for the rich

I'm not supposed to tell you all that but that is the truth.


:evilgrin:

[ashling]

19. Fantastic!

[datasuspect]

35. good stuff

hee hee

[Rabrrrrrr]

17. Would you let people you don't know jog through your kitchen?

In a sense, that's what it would be like going through the gated community.

While I think living in a gated community has its silly aspects, especially when done by generic middle-class idiots who have nothing of any real value to worry about but simply want to seem "superior" - I do understand their intent and I can see why some people choose to live in one - all a gated community really is, is a way to extend one's home boundaries beyond the walls of one's house. Whereas a typical house would be "private property" in the entirety of the house AND the entirety of the land, excepting the possibility of a sidewalk which is public, a gated community simply adds a communal/communist aspect of saying "This is OUR collective private property".

If one is allowed to put a fence around one's house for security, then why not allow a group of houses to put a fence around their collective property?

And there are some legitimate reasons for gated communities - I can see why people in the public eye, who might be hounded by papparazi or a constant barrage of people looking for donations and whatnot would want a gated community - it adds a wonderful extra level of security and distance from the disturbing jackasses.

[Ellen Forradalom]

18. What got my goat

was that a through street had been closed off. While gated communities are annoying, they are more unobtrusive when self-contained, like condo buildings are.

The sheer ostentatiousness of it pissed me off too.

On edit: I can see the utility of gate communities for people in the public eye vulnerable to hordes of gawking jackasses and the occasional psycho stalker, yes. Doesn't mean I have to like them or the kind of society that produces that need.

[zanne]

22. Some people need to be protected from the rest of society...

But I think they have institutions for that.

[Ellen Forradalom]

24. I know it's too much to ask for

but I'd like to live in a society where that were not the case.

[Skittles]

29. I was asked, "Do you belong here?" at the same kind of community

and I was just going for a walk - I am a mddle-aged gal too. WTF!! Rich bastards! I told the man I will walk where I g.d. please. Privately I thought, if I was black the police would be on their way right now. :o

[Tyler Durden]

32. In Houston they pull a gun on you.

I pulled into the drive just to turn around, and the guard unsnapped his holster and with his hand on the revolver mouthed "BACK UP, NOW!"

I motioned I was just turning around, and he started to remove the gun while shaking his head an pointing to back up.

[underpants]

34. I'm not a runner

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0XhQlvNx-c