Articles Posted in Weird Laws

Outrageous, right? But true. As reported by UPI:

Police in Australia have set what they describe as “very generous limits” for an upcoming auto race [The Bathurst 1000]

The limit?

… no more than a case of beer a day for adults.

Holy shiznit. You know Aussie’s like their beer if a case a day is a “limit.” For me, it would mean death by alcohol poisoning. And if you’re not a beer drinker:

Racing fans who do not like full-strength beer have other choices. They can bring in 36 cans of beer with alcohol content of 3.5 percent or less, a case of pre-mixed cocktails or up to 4 liters (about 8 quarts) of wine.

Zoinks. That is a lot of booze!

Power corrupts, and absolute power … So maybe Italian mayors don’t have “absolute” power, but they recently obtained additional authority to enact new laws. Here are a few of them, as reported by Reuters:

In Eraclea, near Venice, building sandcastles is now illegal

In Capri, it is illegal to leave the beach area wearing a bikini.

In Forte dei Marmi, you may not cut your grass on the weekend.

In Eboli, you can be fined 500 euros (about $745 US) for public displays of affection in a car.

And in Novara, while 2 people can hang out in the park at night, 3 people hanging out is illegal.

How about this one?

Rodrigo Piccoli, 33, called national radio to protest after he was fined 50 euros for lying down in a park in the northern city of Vicenza to read a book. The mayor has since promised to drop the ban.

Buono idea , Signore Sindaco. (Good idea, Mr. Mayor.)

Though it certainly wouldn’t be the case, I guess not many legislators are eager to appear to be in favor of sodomy, flag-burning, cohabitation, or unmarried couples having sex. That’s probably why, per the Virginian-Pilot:

The state code [still] declares it illegal for unmarried couples to have sex. Cohabitation, sodomy and flag-burning are still outlawed in the Old Dominion. And don’t even think about unloading or loading oysters from a boat on Sunday. Tobacco warehouses must keep the Sabbath holy, too, although legislators have recently acquired enlightenment about Sunday sales at state-owned liquor stores in large cities.

You can read more here.

These laws are from the Code of Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana:

Sec. 19-12. Silly String sales restrictions.

… (b) It shall be unlawful for any person to sell any silly string, or its equivalent as defined herein, within three hundred (300) feet of any parade route within the parish on any day a parade is scheduled.

Sec. 19-13. Public nudity prohibited.

(a) A person physically present in a public place, who: …

(2) Appears in a state of nudity; commits public nudity and shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. …

(b) “Nudity” means the showing of the .. cleft of the buttocks, vulva …

Here’s a link to the Code. (The picture refers to another Louisiana law. The menace that is Silly String …)

It’s true. Starting in July, Dutch folks will not be allowed to smoke cigarettes in bars, restaurants and cafes, including in the coffee shops famous for selling soft drugs. But, and this is a big “but,” smoking marijuana or hashish will still be legal! You can read more in this Spiegel Online article.

… party balloons! The California Senate passed a bill banning helium-filled, metallic party balloons. Why? Per the AP,

Utility company officials blame fly-away balloons for shorting out power lines and causing hundreds of blackouts in recent years.

Don’t worry yet, kids. It still has to make it through the state Assembly, and of course, the Terminator.

In addition to a few previously noted wacky British laws, as reported in The Daily Mirror, here are a few more that are still on the books:

A law enacted by George I states that: “The severest penaltys will be suffered by any commoner who doth permit his animal to have carnal knowledge of a pet of the Royal house.”

In York, it is still legal to murder a Scotsman within the city’s ancient walls, but only if he is carrying a bow and arrow.

Perhaps that’s the reason Tennessee House Republican Leader Jason Mumpower did what he did. As reported in the Nashville Scene:

Tennessee is the only state in nation with a law preventing sex-change recipients from retroactively revising the sex designation on their birth certificates to correspond with their new gender identity. The law makes it difficult for those who have undergone such surgical changes to get driver’s licenses and other documentation, because obtaining such critical documents invariably requires a birth certificate.

So a bunch of Democrats put together a bill to bring Tennessee in line with EVERY OTHER STATE. Mr. Mumpower would have none of this. How did he kill the bill?

They can run for president. Of the United States. No shit. All you have to do is pay a $1,000 fee and you’re on the ballot. That’s just what Keith Russell Judd, a felon who is locked up in federal prison until 2013, did.

Per a report in Reuters India:

Singapore bans sex between men and any man found to have committed an act of “gross indecency” with another man could be jailed for up to two years. There is no legislation on sex between women.

Okay, so this authoritarian country would allow a commercial showing women kissing? No way. A cable operator was fined for