first mate

I saw one in the garden beside the Library three days ago.

Thanks Huguenot, but does anyone have the figures? In other words, for every crash/accident in London/Southwark, do we know the speed the car was travelling prior to impact?

What is the evidence for showing the speed of each vehicle that has been involved in an accident/collision,prior to impact?

What is the evidence for showing the speed of each vehicle that has been involved in an accident/collision,prior to impact?

Sean, perhaps a bit of a kneejerk reaction on my part and yes the stats look very convincing. Nonetheless, based only on my own experience, and as someone who adheres rigidly to speed limits for reasons of safety etc.., it is the irate driver up your bumper, weaving in and out and then overtaking at 40/50mph, in town, that is the villain. How exactly is a 20mph limit going to change that behaviour- he has already willingly broken the speed limit for 30mph?

Sean, perhaps a bit of a kneejerk reaction on my part and yes the stats look very convincing. Nonetheless, based only on my own experience, and as someone who adheres rigidly to speed limits for reasons of safety etc.., it is the irate driver up your bumper, weaving in and out and then overtaking at 40/50mph, in town, that is the villain. How exactly is a 20mph limit going to change that behaviour- he has already willingly broken the speed limit for 30mph?

PR, I'm with you on this. We all know that those who want to speed and to break the law will continue to do so, whatever the speed limit; they have their little ways of disguising number plates etc..., leaving the rest of us to foot the bill for the new legislation when we accidently go one mile over the 20mph limit. The whole thing is a nonsense and it is, absolutely, about garnering revenue for cash-strapped councils like Southwark. Just like the traffic calming measures that are being reinstated all over roads off Lordship Lane, having being ripped up only a few years ago. But it's for our own good say planning, they want to keep us safe. Wait a minute though, it's also the end of the financial year and any underspend has to be put to "good" use- the real reason behind the speed bumps/traffic calming measures, I suspect

Boom boom!!

yes, As a regular walker in the park I get hacked off by all the rubbish and most of all the amount of broken glass that is strewn around. Really, really selfish and irresponsible behaviour. By the way I happened on the oddest thing over the w/end. The garden on PR was full of people pacing up and down chanting. Anyone any idea who they were and what they were doing?

Steve T, With regard to your earlier post, are there pike in the big lake on PR? I'm genuinely interested. I've seen a fair few rats, both water rats and the normal kind, but was not aware of pike. How thrilling if there was a huge, ancient pike (not to mention wild cats) that lived on the Rye.

Bats, lovely. I always look forward to watching them fly around at dusk, as the weather gets warmer. The other thing we must all watch out for are Stag Beetles. I've seen some real whoppers over the last few years.

After consulting my trusty RSPB Pocket Birds, and given the overwhelming evidence from fellow forumites, I think we can conclude it was indeed a hen Sparrowhawk- be frightened other birds, be very frightened. I discounted the Sparrowhawk at first because the bird I saw didn't have the reddish brown tinge of the cock Sparrowhawk, but the hen's plumage looks right. I'm desperate to hear more of All for Nun's Peckham Rye wild cat episode- or was it an early April Fools joke? I hope not, as walking Peckham Rye at dusk seems much more exciting in the knowledge that we may have a beast of Peckham Rye lurking. Also, I did a quick google and found a report suggesting that some years ago a man living in the Peckham area was given special permission to keep some endangered big cats- I think they were Cloud Spotted Leopards???!!!

I've just watched a bird of prey, either a Peregrine Falcon or a Goshawk, kill and pluck another bird (a young pigeon, I think). It was all I could do not to go out and intervene, as the process took a while and the victim bird was flapping a quite a bit. Quite horrible, but also incredible to see this in your garden.

I'm with Louisa on this. The flowers on GG have been planted for the enjoyment of all, not the use of a few. If the flowers are picked the impact is lost. Leave the flowers alone.

well in my experience that information is incorrect. Foxes do defecate regularly in parks and open spaces. Ask local dog owners how often they have to clean up dogs that have rolled in fox do- so bang goes that theory. Dogs are rather more likely to be regularly wormed than foxes too!

Or invest it wisely, donating interest to the sacked bankers relief fund.

Pi- Kate Bush (sorry cannot find symbol for Pi)

Who'll take the ball from Maggie Thatcher - Corries

Maggie May - Rod Stewart

"Chelsea Morning" Joni Mitchell

Pitbulls and Staffies were orginally bred for bull baiting and dog fighting. Some lines, not all, should not be trusted around other dogs. When used for dog fighting in days of old, the owners needed to be able to separate their fighting dogs to avoid the death of one or the other, without the owners getting bitten. For this reason well bred Staffs and Pitbulls should be very gentle and totally biddable with people. They are actually useless guard dogs on the whole. If these breeds attack people they are likely have been badly abused or of unsound genetic material. Any dog, of any breed, can be taught to attack people but certain breeds are more likely to be people wary and Staffs and Pitbulls are not amongst them. Dogs with strong guard instincts are more likely to turn. A Staff/pit does not lock its jaw it simply refuses to give in once it has a hold. It has all the willpower and obstinacy of other terrier breeds but in addition, incredible jaw strength and a low pain threshold (making it a better dog fighter). One way to get a Staff off another dog is to hold it up by its back legs like a wheelbarrow and have someone else put a stick between its upper jaw. As a rule anyone intervening in a real dog fight, rather than a mild scrap, runs a high risk of getting bitten or worse. It is not advisable. The best thing is to try to avoid these dogs and ensure your dog is well trained enough to come to heel should you need to get it away from another dog. I avoid most bull breeds unless I know the dog and the owner. Ditto Akitas, Malamutes and Shar peis. I think too many people attracted to the gentle nature of Staffs around children etc.. are not always wholly aware how different they can be around dogs. I think a Staff (Pitbulls are totally illegal unless neutered and muzzled) that shows any aggression to other dogs should not be let off lead in public parks and other places. Dog fights present a real risk to children and other people in the vicinity. Too many "Staffs" are crossbreeds. They look like Staffs but do not necessarily have the breed and character traits of a Staff. Thus some may be vicious with people.

Hi Eric, Were the people hostile too or were they concerned about the state of your dog? Did they give you a name and address? Do you think they understood the severity of what the dog had done and will keep it on a lead in future, or are they clueless? Was it pure Staff, or a mix? Hard to tell I know. Is it smallish or one of the longer legged type? Were the police interested? As you know, if you were sufficiently frightened of the dog yourself and had good reason to believe it might attack you, that might be grounds under the DDA to have the dog siezed and PTS.

macroban, Sorry, badly expressed on my part and it did sound patronising. What I was trying to say was that banning dogs from the Green entirely would particularly affect those dog owners who were not up to daily visits to the Rye- amongst these these some elderly dog owners. A voluntary short lead policy would enable those dog owners who need to use the Green, because it is harder for them to go elsewhere, to carry on.

p-in-ed, Thanks for the reasonable tone of your reply. I think the poo and the walkers are two separate things and here's why why. The non scoop poopers are a tiny group who are not going to change, not without a really serious punishment and that would be difficult to enforce. First you have to catch 'em and these anti social types tend to walk their dogs at anti social hours or off lead everywhere. But, we'd all like to see the back of them. The walkers, a bit like me, are worried about dog control orders because for the minority that actively loathe all dogs and would like to see them banned everywhere, applying control orders sets a precedent that could go on to be applied on Peckham Rye etc.. I would like to see a voluntary code of conduct whereby dog owners keep their dogs on a short lead on the Green. Any dog needing a good gallop should be taken to the Rye. If the owner cannot do this then my feeling is they shouldn't have a dog that requires goodly amounts of exercise every day. This allows the elderly and others with lower exercise needs to potter around on the Green. In the same way I wouldn't expect to see full scale football matches and similar on the Green, it's just not of a scale for those kinds of activity- the Rye is. Of course, the really practical solution to the poo issue is that we all pick up what's there (any dog walker should always go armed with plenty of bags anyway) I heave at this idea as much as anyone but if the bag is a good one no harm can come to us. I expect to be hung, drawn and quartered for this suggestion. But it would go some way to solving the problem.

p-in-ed, I feel your pain at the poo but why do you keep assuming that removing or putting up fences is going to make any difference to the tiny amount of people that don't pick up? Rather like those who continue to wilfully speed or drink and drive, despite fines and points on licence, these people are the same. They don't care. I should just add that it only takes one or two of the same people plus dog/s, over a few days, to create the impression that every dog owner is doing it. Also what about the broken glass, haven't you noticed that too?