In the latest bit of seemingly unending absurdity, the City Council of Clifton, NJ is expected to introduce an ordinance this week that would place a limit on how long dogs will be able to bark. According to the council, “noisy canines” are those who bark for an excess of 30 minutes on two consecutive days. Fines for violators of the ordinance, if it passes, would begin at $250.

Am I the only one who thinks this is just beyond ridiculous? There are people dying all over the world from genocide and starving from famine, not to mention the serious national issues we have here in the US like health care, immigration and security, and the people of Clifton are upset about some dogs barking. Give me a break.

The people of New Jersey are often stereotyped as arrogant and selfish, and unfortunately its behavior like this that validates these stereotypes and makes them truths. We should be focusing on something like global warming, not how to shut up the next door neighbor’s dog because we can’t sleep in till 10 A.M. on a Saturday.