People poo-pooing on the Beach

Me too-on to bigger and better things, JB--see you this summer?!

next subject please :roll:

We see a lot of this crap and I've spoken to many, many city/county/state officials about it. Any unattended stuff is considered to be litter and can be removed, or ordered to be removed, anytime. Most prinicipalities have litter laws already set up. The easiest way to stop people leaving tents/coolers setups on the beach, especially if they are left unattended overnight, is to simply "confiscate" them. They'll never leave anything littering the beach again. Nobody thinks of leaving stuff like that on the beaches of PCB as it simply just wouldn't be there in the morning, either "confiscated" for the use by the local fuzz or "considered a donation" by somebody headed for a local flea market. We, and probably most on this board, wouldn't think of leaving anything unattended overnight on any beach anywhere as it's not 'natural'.

For the record, intelligence (IQ) -- assume the person is somewhere in the normal range -- does not predict conscientiousness (which means a sense of responsibility in addition to other characteristics), agreeableness, emotional intelligence, commitment to community, or any other characteristics that may be related to whether people irresponsibly leave stuff on the beach overnight or not. There is decades of research on the link between intelligence and success, consciousness, social responsibility and the link, if it exists at all, would be extremely small (my job is to read this research). In addition to what I've read in the research, my experience suggests that neither IQ or income predict one's commitment to communities or others (again, conscientiousness does).

There's even recent research that found that having lots of people with high-esteem around isn't necessarily the best for communities since it just means that people feel good about themselves --whether they translate those good feelings into a commitment toward others or their communities isn't related to self-esteem.

My guess is that if we wanted to screen people for whether or not they'd leave trash on the beach, we'd want to screen for conscientiousness and a sense of commitment to community rather whether they have high IQ or income.

It probably has more to do with how their mamas raised them, than anything else. I don't think priviledge, circumstance, intelligence or self-confidence has anything to do with it. It is a question of consideration, and consideration has to be taught, and learned.

However, in defense of the tent culprits, they are probably well-meaning people who have no idea that others are having thread wars over their beach appendages.

Problem is, many of us rednecks can't even spell "concentousness" - let alone know what it means...

By the way, this redneck leaves nothin' but footprints on the beach and takes a bag along to pick up others' trash when on my daily walk.

Problem is, many of us rednecks can't even spell "concentousness" - let alone know what it means...

By the way, this redneck leaves nothin' but footprints on the beach and takes a bag along to pick up others' trash when on my daily walk.

That's why there's spell check! Sounds like you are already pretty conscientious to me.

Perfect example of the "Me" generation Sure don't want to EVER see this happen to SolWal or anywhere else for that matter.

Perfect example of the "Me" generation Sure don't want to EVER see this happen to SolWal or anywhere else for that matter.

Is that you in the water?

Is that you in the water?

:nono1: Very funny... No, I haven't gotten that big yet

I agree, Beach Dreamer, consideration for others is taught. That's what I'm hoping for my children. Whether they get straight A's or go to a private school or college is much less important to their happiness and long-term success as long as they make good use of their abilities. If they learn to respect the beach and their neighbors, they'll be in pretty good shape (and I think they're on the right track so far). We'll see if someday they're in the photo above (egads...).

Perfect example of the "Me" generation Sure don't want to EVER see this happen to SolWal or anywhere else for that matter.

That could be "party cove" at our beautiful Lake of the ozarks here in MO it is gross.

That could be "party cove" at our beautiful Lake of the ozarks here in MO it is gross.

Close ..... Lake Havasu City, AZ

Riverotter, My theory about IQ was right! The guy in the water is drinking Keystone NA and I don't think he's looking to recycle.

Riverotter, My theory about IQ was right! The guy in the water is drinking Keystone NA and I don't think he's looking to recycle.

:rofl: Now that's funny

I am disappointed by the tone of this thread. Of course, no garbage. But to think that tents don't belong. I had no idea. We can only afford to go to a beach one week a year. We want to stay near the water all day long without burning - the tents are great.
I have been disappointed in one thing at Grayton Beach. Your cars. So you don't like the vacationers bringing tents but it's alright to ruin the view with trucks and cars?

I don't mind the cars so much. I wish I could use my truck to haul all my junk down to the beach instead of lugging it all the way down the beach. One year old children sure come with a bunch of stuff.

I am disappointed by the tone of this thread. Of course, no garbage. But to think that tents don't belong. I had no idea. We can only afford to go to a beach one week a year. We want to stay near the water all day long without burning - the tents are great.
I have been disappointed in one thing at Grayton Beach. Your cars. So you don't like the vacationers bringing tents but it's alright to ruin the view with trucks and cars?

I think you may have misunderstood, it's leaving the tents on the beach overnight that is a problem.

No one leaves their vehicles on the beach for a week, or even overnight. There's been threads on here about pros and cons of vehicles, even a poll so you might want to vote. As long as it's legal people will drive on the beach.

With my luck, the one day I decide to leave my tent overnight, a turtle would get tangled up in it. "Nooo, that's not my tent."

I don't understand.
Surely, you are not suggesting that wealthy people are more conscientious than poor. If you are, shame on you. I have been blessed with the meeting of a diverse large number people on this earth, and I have quickly learned that one's income level or wealth does not make a person who he or she is. I could begin to rattle off many stories to prove my point, but I will refrain.

:clap_1: :clap_1: :clap_1: well said

I am disappointed by the tone of this thread. Of course, no garbage. But to think that tents don't belong. I had no idea. We can only afford to go to a beach one week a year. We want to stay near the water all day long without burning - the tents are great.
I have been disappointed in one thing at Grayton Beach. Your cars. So you don't like the vacationers bringing tents but it's alright to ruin the view with trucks and cars?

....or the people puling up right beside you and your little ones playing, and start fishing. I don't know, but it seems to me that all that bait, blood, etc. would lure sharks?

Does It? I always wondered, and try to stay away, or move if someone gets too close to me.

Can't we just all get along????

I wouldn't worry about bait attracting sharks, except for a few sharks that take the bait and are caught on the beach.

Shark fishing from the beach is now illegal, but some still do it. However, I haven't seen anyone chum the water in a long time. Apparently that's what they were doing in Pensacola last year when the kid got attacked.

Walton County Code of Ordinances: Article IV, Sec. 22-54,
c)Fishing. It shall be unlawful for any person:
2) While on the beach or within 2500 feet from shore to intentionally fish for sharks or to fish by those methods commonly know as "chumming" or "bloodbaiting."...

As a side note, umbrellas are easy to set up and remove and can provide as much shade as a tent.

My favorite umbrellas are those little one-person ones that are easy to carry to the beach and attach to a beach chair. You can get the umbrellas for about $5.00 and lightweight beach chairs for about $10.00. I found the chairs at Walmart and the umbrellas at a place up north but Walmart may have those as well.