James

Gaynor my mouth is watering

Eh? By resorting to that sort of remark you have given up and are just talking nonsense! Fair enough if you disagree but at least make an intelligent remark. You can do better than that! You could start by explaining to me how exactly "the disadvantages of dog ownership are shared by the long suffering community at large." Nobody has yet explained this. I pick up my dog poo and my dog doesn't hassle people as she is well-trained, so I would love to know what distress I am causing and to whom. The point about car ownership is valid, since this lifestyle also has an impact on others. As does having children. There are those who abuse these privileges and those who do not. Just like owning a dog, surely?

Jackangel, according to your argument nobody should own cars, because the disadvantages of car ownership are shared by the long-suffering community at large, e.g: Pollution Road space Traffic (making bus and taxi journeys slower) Dangerous/drunk/aggressive driving by a minority (since you are blaming me for other people's dog poo & bad dog behaviour I hold all drivers collectively responsible for this)

Keef is good, he has a good attitude

Sorry I missed it too. Had to work late... count me in for the next one :)

We would have to ban all mention of white Stuff, coffee bars, dogs, organic vegetables, chain stores, gastropubs, 3-wheeled buggies and designer kitchenware shops or all hell would be let loose. So what would we be left with to discuss?

Btw if it helps my partner is veggie too and so are quite a few friends - would definitely get everyone to give it a try Thomas!

Clare it would seem we have to "put forward an argument for dog ownership"? OK Alan, can you please put forward an argument for your lifestyle. I think he is beyond help.

Alan, you are surely a wind-up merchant. Nobody could really believe what you're saying. You sound like a lonely insane old man to me - whereas the pro-dog people on here are coming across as rather more well-balanced, reasonable people. Perhaps you should get a dog? It might help you ;-)

Actually, telling off a dog in any language works. It's the way it's said that conveys the meaning. So yes, why not French? Unless you hate the French as well.

This thread has taken a crazy Tony Martin/Texan vigilante style turn for the worse! To be honest I am more afraid of nutters like these roaming the park waiting for an excuse to kick a dog than dangerous dogs themselves. Get a grip please!

I think we can safely say that just as an individual is responsible for their child's behaviour, so they are responsible for their dog's behaviour. This is not the same as saying that a child is equal to a dog. Obviously. You sound deranged.

In response to you Alan, if a dog jumps up on me and/or hassles me and/or was to jump on my picnic blanket I would give it a damn good telling off. And I would expect an apology from the owner. Just as if a small child started drooling on me or stealing my Jaffa cakes, I would refrain from kicking it. I would raise the issue with the parent, as I am a civilized, tolerant member of society. Considering your last post, I wonder whether you are?

A dog "slobbering in your baby's face in its pram"? Um, does this happen often!? Just because some people are afraid of dogs is no reason to put them all on leashes. The actual genuine threat is confined to a tiny number of dogs of particular breeds being raised by people who should never be allowed to own them in the first place. I for one wish the police/RSPCA had greater powers to prevent these people owning them.

Thanks for the sympathy Sean! Fortunately mum was delighted to discover that Hope & Greenwood sold coconut ice so she was able to sit outside there munching on a block instead. It did cost about 50 times more than she remembers from her childhood but you can't have it all.

Get well soon GG I might have to work late tonight but will do my best... anyone elae going?

Ted - I know, I'd be annoyed! But surely there's a better system or way of letting people know in advance that there's a queue for the outside tables. I've never heard of such a thing before, when I go to a cafe I always assume a free table is a free table

Hadn't visited for ages (due to being given a p*ss poor bagel once that hadn't even been toasted) but decided to take my frail, elderly mother there for a coffee on Sat. While I nipped across to ED to get a birthday card for a mate, mum was booted off the terrace as apparently others were waiting for a table there. I won't be going back in a hurry.

Again, please stop making all these judgments about dog owners! Our dog has two long walks every day, and I too do not approve of dogs that are kept cooped up at home all day long. (Neither do I approve of dogs that are never allowed off leash.) My dog is happy, healthy and has a great quality of life - at nobody's expense! You seem to confuse a dog being off-lead with a dog that's out of control. In fact, there is little correlation between the two. I have seen many dogs on a tight lead literally dragging their ownners along with pent-up frustration. Whereas my dog remains under my complete control when she is off-lead, as most well-behaved dogs do. Again, a bad minority of owners means we are all tarred with the same brush.

I think it's perfectly understandable that dog-owners are getting a bit irate about this attack on their animals' freedom - justified by the behaviour of a minority. I too get frustrated with both the Staffie totin' chavs and the irritating yummy mummies who inflict their drooling dogs on others. But my dog is well-trained and well behaved. So why should she suffer? Incidentally, I chose those socio-economic groups on purpose as a statement about discrimination and tarring everyone with the same brush. Sean your suggestion that because some people are scared of dogs, all should be put on leads is pretty absurd. Some old people are scared of hoodies walking along the street (understandably I think) but that doesn't mean we impose a curfew on all children & adolescents. Some people don't like kids running about in pubs - fine, go to one that doesn't accept them. But nobody would suggest a borough-wide ban, would they? Similarly the comparison of this with the smoking law is nonsense because if I smoke in a sealed room, my passive smoke goes everywhere. Wheareas my dog pooing does not affect anyone (I pick it up, and yes you can see where it is if your dog is off-lead) and she does not hassle other park users as I am a responsible owner. She does not "run wild" or "bark late at night" either. Incidentally I would be all for the reintroduction of dog licenses to prevent people breeding menacing, dangerous dogs (the fault lies with humans, not animals for this as with the right upbringing, Staffies can be loving, harmless dogs). So no, I am not going to "swallow my pride" - any more than you would if you were discriminated against because of other people's misdemeanours.

Oh god, can we please have a veggie restaurant there instead of another posh tat outlet?

Well if you agree with this law, why not do the same with children? A minority of them cause havoc in our cities and give the rest a bad name. So I suggest we have a law that all children and adolescents must be kept on a leash in order to protect other people's enjoyment of public spaces. We could have a similar law for poor people/ehnic minorities/people who live on council estates. Punishing people who break the law isn't good enough - we should punish them before they do anything wrong at all. Much more effective. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Incidentally, if this law gets through I will be breaking it! My well-behaved dog is not going to live the rest of her life outdoors attached to a lead.

I think a lot of meat-eaters have a prejudiced, outdated idea of vegetarian cuisine. They should go somewhere like Mildred's to discover how varied and interesting veggie food can be. A friend's meat-loving dad recently went there for dinner and didn't realise it was vegetarian until she told him - he was enjoying his meal so much that the thought never occurred that he was missing out on something. It is not necessary to supplement a vegetarian diet with fish to make it interesting. The vegetarian options currently available on Lordship Lane are pretty poor (apart from perhaps the Indian restaurants). I am SICK of token offerings like mushroom risotto and ready-meal quality veggie burgers. Spadetownboy - you don't seem to realise that whereas you can go to any restaurant on LL us vegetarians have virtually nothing! Thomas - go for it! I think it's clear that there's enough demand for either a fully veg or veg-with-fish place round here. Good luck!

Imagine that - a local Mildred's. That would be brilliant.

Good point. Maybe they should call it Rainbow Stuff? They could sell gay porn and poppers on the side.