Eastsider spotted it and Chicken Corner repeats it: A writer for examiner.com posted a cheery item celebrating the open secret that dog walkers in Elysian Park let their dogs run leashless. Now a neighborhood list serv informs the community that the city has been paying attention and may be cracking down on all the happy dogs and people ambling through Elysian Park.

Why crack down? To make up for lost revenue from the vandalized parking meter in front of the Downbeat Cafe? To be mean to dogs and their owners? Or to send a message to bloggers who encourage their readers to scoff at leash laws?

Which reminds me of a small item the Daily News ran in its features section about fifteen years ago -- telling readers they could save money on Christmas trees if they chopped down their own in the Angeles Forest. A retraction was printed.

Do NOT leave your leash in the car.