Weird Laws Trivia

[mrdreamjeans]

One of the items on my agenda today is to vote. I’ve always been taught that if you don’t exercise your right to vote, then you don’t have a right to bitch about the election outcome. Locally, there’s not much on the ballot except for 16 state constitutional amendments. For those of you unfamiliar with the Texas Constitution, it’s been amended hundreds of times. Many of the amendments are amending previous amendments. It is an unwieldy mess. Still, I’ve studied the proposed amendments and am heading out to cast my vote later this morning.

For fun, I took a trivia quiz this morning on AOL regarding Weird Laws on the books. I scored 10 out of 20. I’ve borrowed the answers to share. Some of the laws are bizarre;some are just too funny for words ... According to AOL, all are current laws!

*In San Francisco, all public vehicles need to be outfitted with spittoons. The law covers not only cable cars and buses, but trolleys, taxis and police cars as well. City officials may be prosecuted if the law is violated.

*Tossing a banana peel on a street is illegal in Waco, Texas because a horse could slip on it and fall.

*In Virginia, a pedestrian is the one fined if he or she is hit by a car. So be on the lookout when you’re crossing a street in Virginia!

*In Michigan, a woman’s hair is the property of her husband once she marries.

*What does a man need to take off before kissing a woman in Eureka, Nevada? His mustache. He’d better be clean-shaven, because it’s illegal for a man with a mustache to kiss a woman in Eureka.

*Passengers in Connecticut can collect $25 from the railroad company if they are delayed more than five minutes on a standing train. (It’s too bad airlines don’t have a similar law.)

*You can’t tie your giraffe to a telephone pole or a street lamp in Atlanta. Then again, why would you have a pet giraffe?

*New Jersey is concerned with your table manners. Which dinner faux pas is illegal there? Slurping your soup.

*When you feel the need to have an outburst in Missouri, make sure it’s not in a church. Any member of a congregation can place you under arrest.

*Make sure you eat before you go - It is illegal for any mourner to eat more than three sandwiches at a wake in Massachusetts.

*Good luck finding someone to show you a car on Sunday afternoon in Colorado. It’s illegal for dealers to show cars on that day.

*You are not allowed to view a moose from an aircraft in Alaska. And if you happen to have a live moose on your flight, don’t throw it out of the moving plane. That’s illegal too.

*It is illegal to take a bite out of anyone’s hamburger in Oklahoma.

*Better start shaking hands and kissing babies, because if you’re a member of Georgia’s general assembly, you can’t get nabbed for speeding while the assembly is in session.

*Maybe it’s because of the bitter cold, but it’s illegal to sleep in the nude in Minnesota.

*In New Orleans, fire trucks are required to stop at every red light. So much for that nice house you owned.

*On the books in Nebraska: It is illegal to go whaling. A mother needs a license to give a perm to her daughter. A person cannot dress a dog as another animal.

*Texas treats stand-up sipping the way Massachusetts treats sandwiches at a funeral. Take more than three sips of beer while standing and you’ve broken the law!

*Living in Idaho and want to give your sweetheart a box of candy? How much do you have to give her to stay within the law? 50lbs

*The minimum age to legally play pinball in South Carolina is 18.

Comments

[texwriterbear.livejournal.com]

I always love reading these.
In Lafayette, where I went to college, if more than three women lived together in a house it was considered a brothel. That is the reason the sorority girls could not have a house on campus.

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

Sorority=brothel. I fail to see the flaw in the thinking. LOL!

[texwriterbear.livejournal.com]

Oh I agree with you there. Of course we knew four girls from two different sororities living in one house together, and believe me the law in effect stood correct :-)

[tbone1961.livejournal.com]

three bears living together???

oh wait. there are TOO many answers to that question! LOL!

[texwriterbear.livejournal.com]

Down mister!!!

[watchingitburn.livejournal.com]

In Alabama, three or more people, in one room, with their shoes off is considered an orgy.

And in Mobile, Alabama, it is illegal for women to wear high heel shoes downtown.
Supposedly, because their shoes could slip into a sewer grate, thus causing injury.

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

What is it with shoes in Alabama? :)

[bruinwi.livejournal.com]

Maybe because wearing them is a rarity?

(*Giggles and ducks the bricks thrown at him by native Alabamians*)

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

Well, then it seems to me that the law would make no sense. Orgies would be prevalent throughout the state:)

[elfkat.livejournal.com]

And it is illegal to herd sheep down Hollywood Blvd. Why anyone would want to do that is beyond me but there you go...

Hugs!

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

I can't think of a reason unless the law goes all the way back to when Hollywood was a farming community.

When I was living in Seattle, I was told that there is a city ordinance that says people can't refer to themselves as "pet owners", as it denotes that the animals are enslaved. (Not sure if it is completely true, but given Seattle's granola politics, it sounds plausible to me:)

HUGS!

[pagerbear.livejournal.com]

I’ve always been taught that if you don’t exercise your right to vote, then you don’t have a right to bitch about the outcome.

Oh, for a more naive time, when one could trust the integrity of the electoral process.

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

Indeed!

[notdefined.livejournal.com]

Although I have been chastised for the practice, I would be legal with my sleeping habits in Minnesota. :)

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

As would I ... I'm not comfortable sleeping in the nude. I wear a comfy, somewhat eccentric flannel nightshirt:)

[albadger.livejournal.com]

Damn, all these years riding buses and trains in San Francisco and nobody's pointed out the spitoon to me! I been spittin' on the floor! D'oh!

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

Ah ... a glimpse of the hidden redneck emerges:) Have you been spitting more frequently since you've been playing a sheriff in "Bus Stop"?

Fingers crossed that the interview with Design Expo goes well!

HUGS!

[theoctothorpe.livejournal.com]

Hmm... I'll have to look into the CT thing, as the train comes to a dead stop, often for more than 5 minutes... Last year I would probably have gained about $200.

interestingly, "late" is considered "over 5 minutes and 59 seconds from the listed arrival time" Mind you, this is only for the *final* destination. Stops in between are simply never counted as late in any event. The Metro North/MTA game the system pretty well, but even still, my line has the WORST "on time" record of the three.

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

When I saw this particular reference, I thought of you immediately. My one question was the definition of "standing train". Does it mean stopped? Or does it mean an overcrowded train where the people who weren't able to secure a seatm thus "standing" make money? LOL!

HUGS!

[theoctothorpe.livejournal.com]

oh, in that case (standing passengers) that would be *every* day!

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

Actually, I would like to know if there really is a law in place to compensate passengers who are inconvenienced by a stopped train. Please let me know!

HUGS!

in NYC

[tkn1114.livejournal.com]

a guy in the subway told me you could get a ticket if you leave your bag(s) on the seat(s). Not always enforced but law. I didn't bother checking.

Re: in NYC

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

If the bags are taking seats away from people who need them, I could see where that makes sense.

[scottokc.livejournal.com]

*Good luck finding someone to show you a car on Sunday afternoon in Colorado. It’s illegal for dealers to show cars on that day.

That's true in Oklahoma as well.

*It is illegal to take a bite out of anyone’s hamburger in Oklahoma.

I vaguely remember reading that this law had to do with some health issues at the time and the risk of spreading disease. Most of these laws made sense when they were passed.

For those of you unfamiliar with the Texas Constitution, it’s been amended hundreds of times. Many of the amendments are amending previous amendments. It is an unwieldy mess.

Oklahoma's constitution is the same way.

[mrdreamjeans.livejournal.com]

Well, we are neighbors:) A well-written consitution should stand up to the test of time. Look how seldom the US Constitution has been amended!

It makes sense to not eat after someone else, but I would offer that passing a law to that effect is overzealous. Common sense should win out.

I'm sure that the law against selling autos on Sunday is a legacy of blue laws ... but why single out cars and not other items? Auto salesmen and women need to eat too:)

[scottokc.livejournal.com]

They wanted to include everything in the Oklahoma constitution that they could, but they overdid it.

Common sense in politics? I think that Oklahoma passed a law to try to get all of the old, obsolete laws off of the books.

You're right about car dealers. I'm surprised that they haven't tried to get a state question to overturn that law.