| Re: Fined for Feeding the Birds
The trouble is there are laws around that we must abide by. Just because you like one law and not the other doesn't mean you should obey the one you like and ignore the one you don't.
If the Council have a law stopping what this couple were doing then that really is the end of the matter regarding this case. If you then don't like that ruling do something about it, lobby your MP or whatever it takes to get the law changed.
I would rarely trust what is actually in print with any newspaper. After all they are in the business to sell newspapers. If the headline had been Pensioner fined for dropping litter I doubt whether there would have been much more than a flicker of interest. Change the title slightly to Pensioner fined for feeding birds and you have a whole new ball game. We just don't know how accurately reported this incident is.
As much as we love birds (and most of you know how much I get out to see them) you have to bow to public opinion when it affects the area you live in. If two people feed loads of birds and those birds create an area of droppings that need to be cleaned quite often then two things happen.
1. Danger to health of children
2. The cost to the taxpayer for cleaning it up.
The danger to childrens health is fairly evident if it's in an area where kids play a lot i.e parks etc.
The cost to taxpayers. How many people complain to councils that uneccessary costs seem to be eating away at the limited budgets they have. What are the councils to do. If they can stop one cost, such as the cleaning an area of bird droppings by bringing in a law, then they will do it. Can you blame them.
We also have to put things into perspective, even if we as birders don't like it. It appears that there were quite a few reported complaints about these two. Councils have to follow up those complaints if they come in on a regular basis (I'm not saying that was happening in this case), but if you have two people feeding birds and a hundred complaints to stop them then public pressure will force it to happen.
Public pressure works both ways. It can benefit birds i.e saving habitats etc, or it can go against them (as apparently in this case).
It's a delicate balance but emotive headlines and content do nothing but feed uninformed judgements on any subject, which might be the case in this issue.
John |