Münchausen syndrome by foxes

From the Independent:

Some people get real pleasure from looking out of the window at home in the early evening to see a wild fox loping across the garden. These graceful creatures, famous in mythology for their cunning, have fired the human imagination for centuries.

But the fox's reputation as an unobtrusive cohabitant of human cities took a severe knock yesterday after two baby girls were taken to hospital – having apparently been bitten by an animal who wandered into a three-storey Victorian house in Hackney, through patio doors left open because of the heat.

From the NZ Herald:

British people have always thought of foxes as harmless, cute creatures.

Many enjoy the occasional sight of a wild fox loping across their garden. Puppet Basil Brush became a popular television character with generations of children.

But the fox's reputation as an unobtrusive cohabitant of human cities took a severe knock yesterday after two baby girls were taken to hospital - having apparently been bitten by an animal who wandered into a three-storey Victorian house in Hackney, through patio doors left open because of the heat.

See, that's the added value you get from the Herald: stories re-written for idiots, by idiots. British people have not always thought of foxes as harmless: they only stopped hunting them a few years ago.

In any case, the story is a load of crock, as every reporter in Blighty knows, or has now been told by experts. Foxes do not do this sort of thing. But it is a story about children being injured at home, so panic ensues. Besides, Britain has libel laws that would eat your children if you gave them the chance. We await the inevitable revelation and the inevitable pretence of shock and indignation from Britain's media. Boom-boom, as the aforementioned Basil Brush would say.