Saturday 1 June 2013

Does That Cloak Of Victimhood Feel Nice And Warm?

Mr Mallak said: "This prosecution has had a significant impact on Mr Hocaoglu, on his health and on his family’s health.
"His wife says they have had sleepless nights because of the prosecution.
"This entire process has left them feeling alienated from their own community and they feel targeted."
Yes, amazingly enough, the family that owned the dog that barked so much it attracted the council's noise department are the real victims...
Under the terms of a noise abatement order the three-year-old Anatolian shepherd now has to stay inside between the hours of 9pm and 8am.
It also has to wear a special collar to stop it from barking. At Bromley Magistrates’ Court last Wednesday (May 15) Mustafa Hocaoglu pleaded guilty to eight breaches of the order - on October 8 to 15 last year.
Not just one. Eight.

But they are special, you see. They shouldn't have to abide by the same laws as everyone else. Or even buy whatever's necessary to stop their hound destroying the peace of the neighbourhood:
In mitigation Tariq Mallak said the problems started when the Chislehurst Road bridge building works began.
He said the noisy building works caused Tolia (pictured above) to bark while adding there had been a meeting between Bromley Council and the Hocaoglu family last August where a council officer said they would supply the special collar.
However, the family were later told they had to buy the collar and this was not delivered until October 19 last year - after the breaches occurred.
A bullet's cheaper and far more certain to shut the brute up. I'd happily shell out for that, were I a Bromley taxpayer.
Mr Hocaoglu was fined £264 and made to pay costs of £697 along with a victim’s surcharge of £26.40.
Speaking after the sentence, his daughter Ren, who owns the dogs, said: "The fine is a lot less than the £40,000 for dog barking we were threatened with.
"We are relieved it’s over but we still feel upset because we were forced to plead guilty just for having animals."
No you're not. I have animals, and yet here I sit, un-fined. My neighbour has three dogs, and yet, no fines! How do we achieve this miracle, I wonder?

Is it because our animals don't cause a noise nuisance? Could be...

3 comments:

SadButMadLad said...

Just looking at it from the other side of the situation.

So a dog has been noisy. But how noisy? Have the neighbours been a bit too sensitive. How noisy is the dog compared to the building work.

Has the council been it's officious self and jumped at a minor situation between neighbours and imposed the state's draconian rules on something which is little more than a strong wind in a teacup?

Ranter said...

I must say that Petts Wood really is attracting moneyed chavs. This once suburban utopia, stuffed full of stockbrokers and other professionals has really gone down hill. Once upon a time, pure snobbery, class awareness, social manners, politeness and a fear of stigmatisation and alienation from the previous incumbents of this mock Tudor 'paradise' would have been enough to silence this stupid, annoying dog and it's stupid, annoying owners.
Chizzle-'urst is the same, Orpington went down the pan years ago and Bromley is a shithole.

JuliaM said...

"Has the council been it's officious self and jumped at a minor situation between neighbours..."

It's possible, but given how they usually go out of their way to try and do nothing, unlikely.

And the immediate slapping down of the race card makes me suspicious.

"I must say that Petts Wood really is attracting moneyed chavs."

Is anywhere immune from this..?