ASBO Jesus passes comment

ASBO Jesus has passed comment in his own inimitable style on one of the hot topics currently doing the rounds of the Christian and, to a certain extent, political, blogosphere.

Dave Walker writes one of my favourite blogs, which has been linked to in my sidebar since starting this blog: The Cartoon Blog. He’s been served a cease-and-desist notice because he’s allowed his blog to become a focus for information surrounding the takeover of the SPCK bookshops by SSG. I’ve followed the story on there for some time, and always felt that Dave has done a good job with the way he’s handled the subject, and not allowed the comments to go overboard, as they could so easily have done at times.

He also happens to be the artist-in-residence at the Lambeth Conference, one of the biggest jobs in his career to date. So this has all happened at a pretty bad time for Dave, with regards to defending and/or fighting this notice. He has therefore acceded to the notice — at least for the time being.

Today, I visited another of my favourite blogs, ASBO Jesus, to find a typically witty and thought-provoking cartoon by Jon there. I always like the way Jon cuts through all the baggage and gets right to the point in his cartoons.

To read more about the background to this, and see what’s happening with the subsequent campaign, see An Introductory Guide, and A Press Room Post, and several other posts on The Wardman Wire

Wheelie bin cross today

It isn’t often I get angry about anything. I’m really quite an easy-going chap. But today I got really cross following a letter that popped through our letter box with today’s post, concerning our wheelie bins. Now that I’ve calmed down, I just couldn’t resist the somewhat “punny” title. And following Steve’s suggestion that I post more, thought I would write about it here — even though it is completely off topic for the blog.

The paragraph of the letter that annoyed me was:

Our waste disposal operatives have reported that you are leaving bins on the public highway on a non collection day. Failure to return bins to your premises following collection in an offence under section 46 of the Environmental Act 1990.

Nowhere in the letter, and certainly not in that paragraph, is there any indication that this letter may have been sent to anyone else other than me. It annoyed me because I know that what is said above just does not happen. The bins are normally put out around midnight the night before they are due for collection. And, as I’m usually around when they’re emptied, most of the time they’re brought back in with thirty minutes of collection. On the odd occasion that I’m out, they’re brought in no later than late afternoon.

I guessed that the letter is probably something that has been sent to a number of people in the area, because there are people living close by who leave their bins out for several days, before and after collection. But, as I say, there’s nothing to indicate that in the letter.

So I got cross because this letter is accusing me of something I know I haven’t done. But I can imagine it being very scary for some people — a frail pensioner that is already struggling with these big wheelie bins, for instance.

I got so cross, in fact, that I rung the District Council to complain — something I very rarely do. Of course, I couldn’t get to speak to the person who the letter was supposed to have been written by, she’s on long term sick leave. So I spoke to someone who said they would get someone else from the department concerned to ring me back, but it might not be until next week. However, surprisingly, I did get a ring back today.

The person who rang me was very helpful, and assured me that this letter was something sent to everybody in the area, and took on board my complaint about the way it is worded. I was, as it happens, the first of quite a long list of people he had to ring back from the same Court as I live in, so it sounds as though I’m not the only one to get cross, or upset, about this letter. He is probably experiencing quite a torrid afternoon, even as I’m writing this. And quite rightly so too. I just hope that no completely innocent people have been scared by the very legal sounding way it’s written.

I hope the next letter that pops through our letter box from the District Council is an apology for today’s.