Ska - "Pick Up The Dog Shit"

According to Wikipedia:"Ska is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae.Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. It is characterized by a walking bass line accented with rhythms on the upbeat. In the early 1960s, ska was the dominant music genre of Jamaica and was popular with British mods. Later it became popular with many skinheads."

Amazing then that a music type with such a history and following should now be used to advise people to do as the title of this post suggests. I can do no more than advise that you watch the video.

Stirling Council Invites Us To "Have A Look At How Granny and Thistle The Dog Do It"!

Now I wouldn't blame anyone for thinking that this title heralded an excursion into the world of pornography of the vilest kind! Thankfully, this is not the case. It merely lets us know that Stirling Council has launched a full on attack against the menace of dog fouling!

A theme emerging of late is the use of music as an educational medium. This post is no exception. Here, we have background music accompanying the activities of a very unconvincing grandmother and her Scottie (well, it is Stirling and, therefore, appropriate to use a Scottie dog).

It is heartening to learn from the article that, in Stirling, you can put dog excrement in your own bin. Personally, I would do all I could to fill mine every fortnight!

The highlight of this blog entry must be the way "Granny" uses the dog to fire excrement at the bin as a child might use a catapult. A truly innovative, visual reminder of the need to clear up.

Read the article here and don't forget to watch the video!

More Than Just A Mother

Although this post is a little old, I feel that we should acknowledge it.

Emily Carlisle runs what she refers to as an "extreme parenting blog". A fellow blogger has hit upon one of our pet subjects.

She gives an account of how she attempted to complain about red rubber bands at what I assume to be a sorting office.

My fellow blogger and I have experience of dealing with aggrieved members of the public.

If only we had been on the same training course as the fellow referred to by Emily.

Read all about it here.

Megan Becomes A Pop Star

I'm sure you've all read the post below this one.

Since I put that article together, things have moved on apace. Megan, the labrador, has become the star of an anti-fouling musical extravaganza.

I sincerely hope that neither of the humans in this video has any hope of a career in any kind of show business aspect of life as the video has killed any chance either might have had.

I challenge you to watch this video without feeling sympathy for those involved (except Megan, who clearly couldn't give a biscuit!).

Children Come On Board In Cardiff

WalesOnline.co.uk has been waging a war on dog fouling.

They realise that the way forward is to educate the young. Clearly an educated youth today means a clean pavement tomorrow!

As a consequence of their campaign, the following idea evolved.

Charity "People Around Here" toured seven primary schools with Labrador Megan, the star of the anti-dog fouling campaign, where they conducted interactive assemblies. The pupils were then asked to draw a comic strip, starring Megan, and the winners would be printed on a leaflet delivering the message to hundreds of homes around Adamsdown.

As ten-year-old Brandon Hadley, from Adamsdown Primary, said: “Many of the places I’ve been have dogs’ mess over the pavement and it’s not very nice.

People who have dogs should try and help by picking it up, but they can’t be bothered. If I had a dog I would pick it up.”

The end result is a series of cartoons highlighting the problem. Having looked at the cartoons, I am reassured that the problem is coming to an end. Just as "Neighbourhood Watch" stickers prevent burglary, so will these cartoons make dog owners more responsible!

I am, however, worried by the closing observation in the article, which reads as follows:"Waste management officers who catch dog owners walking away from their dog’s deposit will face an on-the-spot fine of £75". This is rather harsh on the waste management officers and is hardly an incentive for anyone to take on the job!

Article and cartoons here.