The Emergency Sasquatch Ordinance!
I am very happy to announce that my project of collecting odd laws, which I creatively referred to as "The Odd Law Project," has now become (or I guess is about to become) my first book: Obviously I changed the…
Laws (Dumb)
Odd Law Book News
As I've mentioned before (probably more than once), I have been collecting examples of odd, dumb, and/or unnecessary laws for a while now, both for this blog and for a book project. I am happy to announce that the book…
Official State Crap Update: Connecticut Punts the Wright Brothers
Here's the problem with trying to maintain a comprehensive list of the dumb things legislatures do: they keep doing them. It was just a few days ago that I posted "Official State Crap: Connecticut," the most recent in the remarkably…
TSA: Too Sad for an Acronym
One more just to complete the trifecta, and then I will try to get a little more lighthearted. We've recently seen the TSA harassing the elderly, the very young, and now … the disabled. (Also the nude, but in that case…
Man Ticketed After Cat Won’t Jog
One reason dogs are (arguably) better than cats: you can take them out jogging. According to the Boulder Daily Camera, a 19-year-old man was ticketed in nearby Lafayette, Colorado, last week "on suspicion of tethering his cat to a rock after…
Quail Murderer Encourages Feeding Human Fetuses to Livestock
"You buried the lead" in last week's post about Sen. Ralph Shortey, a reader pointed out to me, and he was right. Given that Shortey's proposed ban on the use of "aborted human fetuses" in food or food research is…
Bill Would Ban Using Human Fetuses in Food, Just in Case Anybody’s Thinking of Doing That
Oklahoma state senator Ralph Shortey is concerned about the possibility that some nefarious person or entity is using aborted human fetuses in food, and has introduced legislation to put a stop to this. Or, to keep it from starting, because…
Karaoke-Triggered Assault Sends Man Through Plate-Glass Window
With the news that half of Americans now favor legalizing marijuana – a number that as many have pointed out is significantly higher than the approval rating of any of our current leaders – isn't it finally time to end…
Law Banning Associations May Violate Right to Freedom of Association
Below are some legal provisions, the first of which you may recognize if you aren't a member of the City Council of Gould, Arkansas. Congress shall make no law … abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or…
Flight Diverted Due to Passenger Nudity
I'll never understand airport security. The same people who insist on seeing you naked then get all upset if you take your clothes off. Make up your minds! For once, alcohol apparently played no part in an incident of this…