Crazy Laws
We are told that private gambling is against the law, yet if it is the government running the gambling it is okay. The government even advertises gambling trying to entice us to spend our hard earned money in such a way that we will almost always lose it. Why is it okay for the government to run a gambling parlor such as off track betting, or issue lottery tickets of all different kinds and yet if a private citizen did this they would go to jail? Yes I know, Nevada is an exception. The state of Nevada decided on an alternate route and that was to regulate gambling and make huge amounts in taxes. This is the same thing that is going on in Atlantic City and other places. So now you have some private companies running gambling in some places, governments running gambling and people going to jail since they were unauthorized to run gambling. As gambling creeps into more and more states in the form of both casinos and lotteries, the line is really getting blurred.
Graphic Source: IClipart.com There are a lot of senseless laws in this country. Some are just plain stupid while others made sense at one time but no longer do. There is actually a law on the books in one of our states that reads that is considered an offense to open an umbrella on a street, for fear of spooking horses. Would you say that this law has no more reason to exist? That makes about as much sense as another law that states that dominoes many not be played on Sunday. You will just have to wait until Monday to enjoy them. Here are a couple of more laws from our southern states. If you put salt on a railroad track, it is punishable by death. Yes you heard me correctly, so I suggest leaving the salt home if you are going to take a train. Some laws are ancient, it is just that no one ever got around to changing them and most lawmakers probably don't even know that most of them exist. So far most of the laws I have talked about are on the books in Alabama, and there are even more. In one county it is a crime to sell peanuts after after sundown on Wednesday. Now you may wonder how such laws got onto the books? It just so happens that I know a little bit about these things. I remember one very powerful politician that didn't want a certain expressway running past his house so he rallied his political allies and had it stopped several blocks before where he lived. I don't know why the peanut law went into effect, but I can guess. Probably some vendor would come around at night and hawked his peanuts and someone with some pull had a law put on the books to stop his annoying howling.
Graphic Source: IClipart.com Let's talk about some of the dumb laws in New York State. It is perfectly legal for a woman to go topless unless she is advertising a business. I guess this pertains to prostitution. Did you know that it is illegal for people in New York State to greet each other by putting their thumb on their nose and wiggling their fingers? The is an old law on the book that states that the penalty for jumping off a building is death, yeah duh? Here is one of my favorite New York Laws, in order to dissolve a marriage on the basis of irreconcilable differences, both parties must agree. Well I don't know why anyone would do this, but in a town in New York a person may not walk around on Sundays with an ice cream cone in their pocket. New York even has an elevator law. It states that if you are in an elevator, you must fold your hands, look toward the door and talk to no one. If you are thinking about flirting, you better have some cash on you, because flirting in some towns in New York State carries a $25 fine. If you think that Alabama and New York laws are crazy, California is no different. Here are some California laws. Animals are banned from mating in public within 1,500 feet of a tavern, school or place of worship. I wonder if an animal can use the defense that they didn't have a chance to read the law yet? Women in California may not drive wearing a house coat. Here is a great law, no vehicle without a driver may exceed 60 miles per hour. Yikes I wouldn't want to be on a road there, with all those driver-less cars whizzing by. You must obtain a permit from the sheriff to cross dress. San Francisco has a law that states it is illegal to pile horse manure higher than 6 feet on the street. Yuck! A person may not carry lunch down a street at lunchtime. Wow that makes sense, well just about as much sense as the gambling laws. Illinois has its share of stupid laws. One of them states that if you don't have one dollar bill on you, you can be arrested for vagrancy. What about a credit card? Better carry some money when you go out. In Chicago there is a law that states that any business that wants to open up in Chicago must report any dealings it had with slaves. If you are in Chicago be careful where you fish from because it is illegal to fish while sitting on the neck of a giraffe. What about sitting on an elephant? No kite may be flown within the city limits of Chicago. If you live in Cicero you better not hum while walking on the street on Sunday unless you want to risk arrest. If you live in Crystal Lake and want to plant new sod, there is a law that states you can not use the city's water to water that sod. Here is a tough law to ignore if you live in Des Plaines, if you have a wheel barrow with a for sale sign on it, you may not chain it to a tree . Lastly I thought that it might be interesting to see some of the silly laws in Texas. In Texas it is illegal to take more than 3 sips of beer at a time if you are standing. What is the problem with the following law, it is illegal for a person to consume an alcoholic beverage while operating a motor vehicle upon a public roadway, if the person is observed doing so by a peace officer. Hey drink all you want just don't get observed and even if you are stopped, its okay. The Encyclopedia Britannica is banned in Texas. After reading the following law you have to wonder about rail travel in Texas. When two trains meet each other at a railroad crossing, each shall come to a full stop and neither shall proceed until the other has gone. In Texas there is no law mandating the need for a windshield on a car, but it is illegal to drive without windshield wipers. In Clarendon it is illegal to dust any public building with a feather duster. Yup there are some crazy laws on the books. I would like to leave you with this Houston law, Beer may not be purchased after midnight on a Sunday, but it may be purchased on Monday. And these are our lawmakers.... |
