Masaad Ayoob On Answering Your Door

I live in a suburban neighborhood where I get visits from neighbors I know and neighbors I don't know. I can see faces on my surveillance system and if I don't recognize them I answer them with my Ring doorbell camera app on my phone.

That video is 10 years old. Technology has passed it by. If one's goal is safety, a surveillance system is the best way to go. I stay away from my front door when unrecognized individuals call on me. They can talk to the Ring and they know they're being recorded.

I was at work and I had a visit from a utility worker that needed access to my back yard. We spoke over the Ring camera. I could see his truck's gas company stickers and his hat. I gave him permission and asked that he be careful with my dog in the backyard. Then I watched him until he left.

 

I don't like most people. You do you Boo.

It could be, but it hasn't been so yet.

My family has different mores than your family does. I don't show up at a friend's house unless I've been specifically invited.

The people in my circle (which is essentially my family) don't show up at my house unannounced. My family would certainly be welcome if they did but that's not how we do things.

So yes I can categorically state if you knock on my door unexpectedly you're not somebody I know.

But either way ( to bring us back to the main topic) if there's an unexpected knock on my door I'm going to look at the Ring app on my phone and see who it is.

If it's not somebody I know then I will ask them how I can help them through the speaker on my doorbell. I'm still not opening the door. I'm still not standing in front of the door. They still have no idea where I'm at in the house or even if I'm in the house and I'm still expended last effort than it would take me to walk to the door.

Take this for what it's worth, I lived in the barracks for 8 years. During that time my Barracks room was my home but my home wasn't my home.

At any given time anyone in my NCO Support Chain or Chain of Command could enter "my home" without my permission.

When I moved out of the barracks I found out my home still wasn't "my home". My Platoon sergeant had to approve me moving off post. He wouldn't allow me to move off post until he inspected the premises and approved them. They never actually did it but even after I've been approved to move off post "my home" was subject to inspection at any time just like my room in the barracks was.

That my have colored my views on the sanctity of my home.

 

Who would have ever thought someone you don't know and wasn't expecting might have a legitimate reason for being at your door. Imagine!

 

Reading your posts.

Unless it's an immediate life or limb issue, I won't. It's been my experience all you're going to do is piss somebody off. They don't care and they don't want to be bothered.

Which is why I have stated numerous times in this discussion that I would answer through the doorbell speaker.

Which makes all of the above irrelevant

 

I never said they didn't. What I said, very specifically was if there's an unexpected knock on my door I automatically assume that it's somebody I don't know because people I do know don't do that.

 

Pretty much this. I have a pair of Blink camera, purchased from Amazon on sale. IIRC one cost me $35 and the second was $18. If there's a knock at my door I grab my phone and bring up the live view; this action takes between 3 and 5 seconds depending on where I left my phone. And as JohnKSa points out there are countless situations where someone might knock on your door that are not nefarious. I'm not a very social guy but I'm on pretty good terms with my nearest neighbors. On occasion a package will be left at the wrong address or something. There are plenty of circumstances where someone might ring my doorbell.

 

Pretty common id imagine, believe it or not. Always been a way of life for many of us. Relatives. Friends. Strangers. "Is that old 50s model xxx for sale..." (its not) "boy/ girl scouts" "Jehovas witnesses" (annoying I know, but willing to be hated, cursed, shot at etc etc just because they feel they are saving your soul.....I try to humor them). I had two women pull up in a big Dodge truck trying to sell me steak the other day. I was outside working on an old c10, so I couldn't retreat and hide behind the door though. Just had to say no, and send them half a mile up to my neighbors just for fun. Knowing he is picky about his meats and orders them fresh from a specific butcher. No way he would ever entertain buying frozen steak. Lol. Strangers getting ATV stuck or something aren't rare either. I'm usually out working on something or on the tractor anyway so it's not so much answering the door. Last week some guys wanted to cut limbs off some old bushes that grow by the creek. They sell them apparently. For 40 years We burn them. Cut them. Doze them under.... kill one and 75 sprout back. Told them to knock themselves out.

I've spent about 1000 nights on my parents porch shelling or breaking beans, splitting potatoes to plant, or shucking corn. 50 yards from the road. Nearly all of those nights some person stopped and sat down and visited. Most times I know them. Sometimes I didn't, but more than a few I'd ask "who was that" and they say "I don't know" or "I think it was xxxxxx maybe. Not sure". After 2-3 hours of breaking beans I was never so much worried about someone just killing me. Pretty sure I even uttered that a few times. I don't even eat beans.

And Mass did state 2am. If I get a knock at 2am my response is far different. Id expect a call first. And a very good excuse just for the call because if my phones ringing at 2am I'm not happy. I'll be very guarded if I get a knock. And yes I'll be armed. And no I won't square up to the door. But at 2pm, I'm either outside and you will have to come find me sawing wood, mowing, feeding or something (negating all my tripwires, punji stake and gps enabled surveillance linked to the AC-130). As the old folks always told me back in my "heathen" days.... my doors always open.

And anyone that you ask about me around here would tell you, I'm not even the outgoing, social type either.

 

One stipulation - things like Ring cameras, et. al., that use an app on your phone, leave a lot of us "out of the loop" as we don't have (can't afford, don't want, etc.) a "smart phone".

 

But that's your choice.

 

Jebus
even more "what if"...
If you are that impoverished, you probably qualify for an Obama phone, free from the gument.
jmo,
.