A few entrepreneurial teens in Bound Brook, NJ, learned in a valuable lesson in government dominance
Bound Brook cops stop teens seeking snow shoveling work
School was closed for the blizzard that wasn’t, but there was still enough snow on the ground that two Bridgewater-Raritan Regional High School seniors thought they could make a few extra bucks.
In the process, Matt Molinari and Eric Schnepf, both 18, also learned a valuable lesson about one of the costs of doing business: government regulations.
The two friends were canvasing a neighborhood near this borough’s border with Bridgewater early Monday evening, handing out fliers promoting their service, when they were pulled over by police and told to stop.
Bound Brook, like many municipalities in the state and country, has a law against unlicensed solicitors and peddlers.
Despite the rule, however, Police Chief Michael Jannone said the two young businessmen were not arrested or issued a ticket, and that the police’s concern was about them being outside during dangerous conditions, not that they were unlicensed.
You have two issues, first, this was mostly about stopping people from making money without a license. Anyone going door to door needs a license that costs $450 and is good for 180 days. Second, being told that you are not allowed to go outside and walk around? What nation are we living in?
“We don’t make the laws but we have to uphold them,” he said Tuesday after reading some of the online comments about the incident. “This was a state of emergency. Nobody was supposed to be out on the road.”
He’s right, they don’t make the laws, but, if President Obama can tell law enforcement to ignore the law regarding illegal aliens, the Bound Brook police can ignore some teens wandering around offering to shovel snow, especially when this goes to many people calling them to come.
The police say the story is about someone calling because they saw a “suspicious” person walking through yards, and that they were concerned for the safety of the teens. We’re quite a delicate society now, eh? Grandpa would like to let you know that he walked 5 miles to school in the snow. Uphill. Both ways. With an onion on his belt.
Crossed at Right Wing News.
Thursday morning links
Today’s photo is shown to help promote multicultural understanding CUNY: Don’t Call Students ‘Mr., Mrs. or Ms.’ Because That’s Maybe Disrespectful – Don’t do anything that someone could find offensive! A book: Building the Workingma
All I can say is “Thank God for the cops.” These young criminals were trying to make money that wouldn’t have been taxed for the good of the people. Disgusting!
This law was an anti hobo anti gypsy law
[…] …………this is kind of idiocy we speak of […]
John,
What is wrong with that? Do you support homeless people hanging around and creating dangerous situations? Why can’t we have the homeless taken care of in a better manner? Why do you want gypsy’s plying there trade, which is usually begging and theft? Does that sound racist, too bad.
Happened in a Philly suburb too. They were adult men though. I still don’t see why they can’t shovel without a permit. It’s not an ongoing job. Lot of single women, widows and elderly people might be happy to have someone offer to shovel!
Too bad we have no tolerance and lack common sense.
Couple of things…..
I grew up in Baltimore which has an ordinance that sidewalks must be shoveled 8 hours after the end of a snowfall. No one really enforces the ordinance until it becomes a major issue, but the ordinance is there. You are right that there are people would love to have their sidewalks cleared because they are elderly, infirmed or in some cases, too tired to get it done in a timely manner.
That being said, growing up none of the elderly, infirmed, etc in my neighborhood ever had to pay for someone to shovel their sidewalks. Kids and adults would swarm their property and shovel without thinking. It was part of being a good neighbor and looking out for each other. I can’t tell you the number of storms I helped shovel out and sidewalks that I cleared that were not mine. At the end of the shoveling or the end of the night, someone would always bring out a thermos full of hot chocolate to share.
I miss the days of looking around and seeing neighbors, rather than seeing people who live near me.