20-YEAR BATTLE OVER VOLUME OF NEIGHBOR’S TOILET FLUSH COMES TO AN END

An Italian couple has won a 20-year court battle over the volume of their neighbor’s toilet flush. It all began in 2003, when four brothers installed a new toilet in their apartment located in the La Spezia province of northwest Italy. The husband and wife living next door soon complained that the toilet was used frequently during the night, and the flush was so loud it woke them up each time. The couple took their case to court, and a judge rejected their case. They appealed, and that court actually went to the apartments, heard the sound of the flush, and found in their favor. The four brothers were required to change the location of the toilet and, as a penalty, pay 500 euros for each year the toilet was in operation. The four brothers appealed to the highest appeals court in Italy. They lost. The high court ruled that the impact of the flush had a negative effect on their quality of life.
* Twenty years, 500 euros a year in fines, and they have to move the toilet. Still cheaper than hiring a plumber.
* Four men, 20 years of prostate enlargement, one toilet. Can you imagine how often that thing got flushed every night?
* 2,800 years of civilization, and the Italians have yet to figure out toilets. Or ice, for that matter.
* The Case of the Cacaphonous Commode.
* They can wipe that one from the books.