Minor things that bother you

[1995hoo]

"No Soliciting" also technically only pertains to salespeople.  Doesn't cover missionaries and the like.

It means whatever the property owner thinks it means. I think that's what the person who knocked at the door tried to argue—I seem to remember it was a political operative.

This defense did not get them not yelled at, it did not get them a chance to talk to my wife about their candidate, and I think she specifically voted against that candidate for waking her up (which was one of the things she yelled at the person at the door).

Our county has a law making it illegal for a door-to-door solicitor to disregard a "No Soliciting" sign, although I have my doubts about the chances of getting the police to enforce it. I don't know whether it has exemptions for religious activity or the like.

[ZLoth]

I have this sign hanging on my door:



It _usually_ works.

[Max Rockatansky]

If you have dogs, just send them towards the door.  Usually four yapping dogs of varying size is enough to ward off anyone trying to ring my doorbell or knock for something. 

[formulanone]

If you have dogs, just send them towards the door.  Usually four yapping dogs of varying size is enough to ward off anyone trying to ring my doorbell or knock for something. 

During my short tenure of pizza delivery, I found a hot pizza can make a charging dog come to a halt.

[1995hoo]

If you have dogs, just send them towards the door.  Usually four yapping dogs of varying size is enough to ward off anyone trying to ring my doorbell or knock for something. 

We have a cat, which means it doesn't matter what I want her to do at any given moment!

[Rothman]

I have this sign hanging on my door:



It _usually_ works.

That one should work.  No puppy-dog eyed kids selling cookies or candy, though.

[ZLoth]

That one should work.  No puppy-dog eyed kids selling cookies or candy, though.

The last time I dealt with the dealers of the addictive substance known as GSCs, I asked what flavors were their favorites which I promptly purchased. Once the merchandise was received, I promptly returned the merchandise, but did not ask for a refund, as I figured those purveyors could use the money and the merchandise more than I could.

[ZLoth]

Meanwhile, I've received the latest map from the NWS Storm prediction Center. Most of the county I live in is listed as "thunderstorm" risk while a small piece in the "level 1" (marginal) risk for severe weather. Because I practically live on the southern county line about thirty miles away, I will probably receive multiple SAME warnings covering areas far away from me because the SAME codes only go down to the county level. I will have to then visit https://mesonet.agron.iastate.edu/vtec/search.php multiple times to assume my mother that the warning does not apply to us.

I'm sure some current and former Oklahoma and Arkansas residents are chuckling at this complaint. Hey, one of the first things I got when I moved to Texas was a SAME radio.

[CtrlAltDel]

That one should work.  No puppy-dog eyed kids selling cookies or candy, though.

The last time I dealt with the dealers of the addictive substance known as GSCs, I asked what flavors were their favorites which I promptly purchased. Once the merchandise was received, I promptly returned the merchandise, but did not ask for a refund, as I figured those purveyors could use the money and the merchandise more than I could.

Are we different people.

[Big John]

I have this sign hanging on my door:



It _usually_ works.

What about saleswomen?

[Scott5114]

You're assuming everyone with a No Soliciting sign yells at or turns away door knockers.  That's not the case.

I am assuming that door knockers want to accomplish something from the door knocking. There are only so many doors a person can knock on in a day. What's a better use of their time, going up to homes that indicate their residents prefer not to be bothered and being ignored, or worse, having time wasted by a conversation about how finely the hair that is 'soliciting' can be split, on the off chance that maybe the person put up the sign but doesn't feel strongly about enforcing it...or skipping over that house to go to one where someone is more likely to actually be receptive to doing whatever the purpose of knocking on the door was?

If you're just walking around town knocking on doors to kill time finding someone to talk to about nothing in particular, then, yeah, I guess knocking on "no soliciting" doors makes sense.

[Rothman]

You're assuming everyone with a No Soliciting sign yells at or turns away door knockers.  That's not the case.

I am assuming that door knockers want to accomplish something from the door knocking. There are only so many doors a person can knock on in a day. What's a better use of their time, going up to homes that indicate their residents prefer not to be bothered and being ignored, or worse, having time wasted by a conversation about how finely the hair that is 'soliciting' can be split, on the off chance that maybe the person put up the sign but doesn't feel strongly about enforcing it...or skipping over that house to go to one where someone is more likely to actually be receptive to doing whatever the purpose of knocking on the door was?

If you're just walking around town knocking on doors to kill time finding someone to talk to about nothing in particular, then, yeah, I guess knocking on "no soliciting" doors makes sense.

As long as the possibility is there for someone with a no soliciting sign to open their door to whoever, the door knockers will keep coming (an outright salesperson would have to be quite bold, if not putting their job on the line).

So, the real people you need to be mad at are those who put up a sign and then welcome door knockers in.

[webny99]

What's a better use of their time, going up to homes that indicate their residents prefer not to be bothered and being ignored, or worse, having time wasted by a conversation about how finely the hair that is 'soliciting' can be split, on the off chance that maybe the person put up the sign but doesn't feel strongly about enforcing it...or skipping over that house to go to one where someone is more likely to actually be receptive to doing whatever the purpose of knocking on the door was?

The problem is that almost no one wants door knockers, so response rates are going to be very low regardless. And the majority people going door to door for whatever purpose have probably either convinced themselves that they're not soliciting, or (perhaps more likely) they are so desperate to achieve whatever purpose that they don't even care. Either way, if they were going to let a door sign be a deterrent, they've pretty much accepted failure, and shouldn't have even started out on their journey to begin with. (You could probably argue in many cases that that's exactly what they should have done, but that's another subject.)

[GaryV]

Whether you intend to answer or not, the door knocker / doorbell ringer has woken up the baby and set the dog into uncontrollable yapping.

[jeffandnicole]

One day when I was outside and thus couldn't avoid a salesman, he tried selling me on solar panels.  After saying no, he left and went next door...which already had solar panels, so now I'm intrigued.  I heard the guy ask the homeowner if he wanted Verizon FIOS.

[kphoger]

Being a renter does come in handy to turn home improvement salesmen away.  "Our landlords are really picky, and they have their people."

Growing up, my parents had an even better card to play.  We lived in a church parsonage.
— Good afternoon, sir.  May I ask, do you own your home?
— No, we don't own our home.
— Oh, so you rent.
— No, we don't rent either.
— Oh ... ummm ... uhhh ...

[Rothman]

At least 30 years ago, the statistic Mormons went by was 1 out of 1,700 doors let you in.

[kphoger]

At least 30 years ago, the statistic Mormons went by was 1 out of 1,700 doors let you in.

Having grown up in a town with a total number of households below 700, I suspect that number is not accurate.

[Rothman]

At least 30 years ago, the statistic Mormons went by was 1 out of 1,700 doors let you in.

Having grown up in a town with a total number of households below 700, I suspect that number is not accurate.

So...a lot of converts in your town then...

[kphoger]

So...a lot of converts in your town then...

No, but the idea that knocking doors would take a town 2½ times the size of my hometown to have one person let you in:  that just doesn't jive.  I personally know multiple people who have let Mormons in.  Heck, I've let Mormons in (they stayed about an hour and a half last time but left disappointed).  I've knocked doors with our church before, asking how we could pray for people in the neighborhood, and most people answered the door and talked with us at least a little bit;  while nobody invited us inside, we didn't ask for that anyway.

But no, there wasn't a Mormon church within 30 miles of where I grew up, so no converts that I'm aware of.  I mean, my school music teacher and his family were Mormons, but they were before they moved to town.

[JayhawkCO]

My desk at home is in the "garden level" basement facing the front of the house, so whenever we have a solicitor come, they walk right in front of my window. So, often they might see me down here working behind my monitor, but more often than not they don't. When they do see me, I have a piece of paper that says "In A Meeting" that I'll put in the window so I can happily ignore them.

[Rothman]

So...a lot of converts in your town then...

No, but the idea that knocking doors would take a town 2½ times the size of my hometown to have one person let you in:  that just doesn't jive.  I personally know multiple people who have let Mormons in.  Heck, I've let Mormons in (they stayed about an hour and a half last time but left disappointed).  I've knocked doors with our church before, asking how we could pray for people in the neighborhood, and most people answered the door and talked with us at least a little bit;  while nobody invited us inside, we didn't ask for that anyway.

But no, there wasn't a Mormon church within 30 miles of where I grew up, so no converts that I'm aware of.  I mean, my school music teacher and his family were Mormons, but they were before they moved to town.

Glad your town beats the statistic, then...but how many have "no soliciting" signs?

[webny99]

At least 30 years ago, the statistic Mormons went by was 1 out of 1,700 doors let you in.

No, but the idea that knocking doors would take a town 2½ times the size of my hometown to have one person let you in:  that just doesn't jive.

It's important to define what "let you in" means here.

If it means "answer the door", 1 out of 1700 is way too low.
If it means "come sit down in the living room and I'll hear you out", 1 of 1700 is probably pretty accurate.
If it means "choose to convert their religion based on someone showing up on their doorstep", 1 of 1700 is on the very high end of believable.

[kphoger]

It's important to define what "let you in" means here.

If it means "answer the door", 1 out of 1700 is way too low.
If it means "come sit down in the living room and I'll hear you out", 1 of 1700 is probably pretty accurate.
If it means "choose to convert their religion based on someone showing up on their doorstep", 1 of 1700 is on the very high end of believable.

No, I properly understood it as "come sit down in the living room and I'll hear you out".  I know way fewer than 1700 households' worth of people, and yet I personally know multiple people who have let Mormons (and JWs) into their house to have a discussion.  Plus my wife and me, ourselves, of course.

[webny99]

No, I properly understood it as "come sit down in the living room and I'll hear you out".

Maybe. Probably, even. But unless you already second-sourced, Rothman will have to confirm that's what it means.

I know way fewer than 1700 households' worth of people, and yet I personally know multiple people who have let Mormons (and JWs) into their house to have a discussion. 

Unsurprising. I can absolutely see a small Kansas town tracking well above the national average.