I think an awful lot of people on Mumsnet assume that a) everyone has the same kind of life they do and b) no one can adapt to circumstances.
For example, on threads when people admit to not answering the door, there will inevitably be responses saying ‘You unsociable lot! Why would anyone be so miserable as to not answer their door? What if it’s a dear friend who wants to give you a lovely surprise? Or a neighbour dropping in with homemade cake to get to know you better?’
My closest friend, in geographical terms, lives a 25-minute walk away. To ‘pop in’, she needs to make a round trip of almost an hour, with no guarantee I’ll be in. Why would she do that when she could just WhatsApp me saying ‘Fancy a coffee?’? That’s how I know any unexpected knock at the door is more likely to be a charity collector or someone doing a survey.
Similarly, there will always be a poster who responds with ‘But what if it’s a neighbour who desperately needs help, and you’ve just ignored them?’ Don’t these desperate people think to knock again, and again, and to do it louder? Maybe even shout ‘HELPPP!!!’ at the top of their voices through the letterbox? I might just sense the urgency… From the way some Mumsnetters talk, you’d think people whose houses are on fire knock once, then shrug their shoulders and say ‘Well, that’s not very neighbourly is it?’ in a supercilious whilst watching the flames rise.