What is it about the human condition that urges us to do things in private that we would never do in public?
That urge begins as a child. Who hasn’t been in that situation when you know what you are doing is wrong, but no one’s looking so you do it anyway?
This week’s dumping incident at Stave West is a good example of how that childish urge manifests itself in adulthood.
No normal-thinking person would take 28 bags of asbestos and dump them on the street corner, or in the mall parking lot. But drive up a forest service road, into the woods, where the eyes of society are not there to watch you, and those bags get tossed from the truck as quickly as possible.
Why? Because you can get away with it, if no one is looking.
This kind of reckless behaviour doesn’t just happen in Stave West, or Stave East, but any isolated area.
However, Stave West serves as a perfect example of people behaving badly when they think no one can see them. Or judge them.
Wild parties, illegal campfires, drinking, unlicensed vehicles, gunfire, garbage dumping: It all happens there and many people do it without giving it a second thought. If they are in the woods, then they can act like animals.
But no more.
Mission RCMP are cracking down on people who feel free to flaunt the law – not just in Stave West but in all of Mission’s rural areas.
The police aren’t shutting down recreational activities; they are just targeting illegal and dangerous actions.
So next time that urge rises to “get away” with something, remember someone is probably looking.