Free Republic

Lunacy on the Left Coast: As you’ve likely heard, the city of San Francisco has a bit of a homeless problem, and as such, city taxpayers are spending a king’s ransom every year to deal with it. Two of the newest ‘additions’ to San Fran’s Public Works staff are personnel dedicated to cleaning up after the homeless. That includes picking up their used drug needles and their human feces — the latter for a whopping $184,000-plus dollars per year per “Poop Patrol” employee.

In a city where filthy sidewalks are many residents’ No. 1 complaint, City Hall has come up with a new way to deal with No. 2. It sounds like silly elementary school banter, but it’s real. San Francisco is about to launch the Poop Patrol. In about a month, a team of five Public Works staffers will begin patrolling the alleys around Polk Street and other hot spots in a vehicle equipped with a steam cleaner.

DNA Test Helps Enforce Pet Clean Up Policy SAN DIEGO - The same DNA technology that has solved cold case murders is now being used to crack down on a whole new class of criminals: dog owners who don't clean up after their pets. "Unfortunately, people leave surprises in my yard, but I always carry plastic bags, so I can clean up those surprises," said dog owner Ted Stevens. Now, BioPet Vet Lab ,a company in Knoxville, Tenn., has developed technology that is says can identify the dogs that leave unwelcome calling cards on neighborhood lawns. The system, called Pooprints,...

Health officials plan to use DNA testing to reveal the poopy perpetrators behind the sewage fouling Malibu's famously star-studded coastline, the Associated Press reports.

School investigating after boys forced to clean up restroom Officials in the Bird Island, Olivia, Lake Lillian (BOLD) school district are investigating after a teacher forced boys in her kindergarten class to clean a restroom smeared with feces. "The district is in the process of investigating what occurred, and we will deal with it," said BOLD Superintendent Mike Funk. "I can assure you that this will not happen again." Funk said he has spoken with the parents of two of the ten boys involved in the clean-up. He said the teacher will write a letter to the other parents to...