Lamebrain laws, what's your favorite example?
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ETpro (
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April 26th, 2012
For instance, in the USA, it is against the law to have sex for money—unless you capture the entire thing on camera. That’s my candidate for stupid law of the year. What’s yours?
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39 Answers
Too many to choose from.
You can eat a McDonald’s hamburger or have a beer, but can’t consume, smoke, or grow pot.
Government surplus powdered milk gets thrown away every year, unless food shelters get a waiver to make the surplus milk into cheese. The shelters are forbidden to give the powdered milk to starving families. There are tons of laws like this that infuriate me
Carpool lanes are for two or more people. Should be for two or more licensed drivers. A lady and her two year old kid aren’t carpooling.
Churches (aka religious businesses) are exempt from taxes
The fact that you can be denied a loan for college just for being convicted of a simple drug offense. However, you can still get a loan if you were convicted of murder, rape, burglary, embezzlement, insurance fraud, etc, etc, etc.
The law of adverse possession. I have never understood how someone could be rewarded for ignoring boundaries and taking someone else’s land.
Sign upon entering the state of Nevada.
Welcome to Nevada
Gambling legal, prostitution legal, keeping Lobsters illegal.
WTF!
So are they afraid of Lobsters being released into the desert and mutating into wild desert lobsters? lol
@Coloma This is SERIOUS. It could lead to another lobster uprising, like the last one in 1846. That’s the reason for that law!
@Trillian yes! Crustaceans unite, claw binding and boiling must stop!
Oh, wow, so many where to start? We have a local one: Heels greater than 2 inches high or with a base less than 1 inch across are not allowed without a permit. The permits are free at city hall. It protects the city from being sued for uneven sidewalks.
Hmm, according to a couple of sites, I am breaking the law here in Memphis on two accounts:
1.) Illegal for a woman to drive a car unless there is a man either running or walking in front of it waving a red flag to warn approaching motorists and pedestrians.
2.) It’s illegal for frogs to croak after 11 PM.
@Pied_Pfeffer Haha..yes, in California it is illegal for a car with no driver to exceed a 60mph speed limit. lololol
Apparently, stupid laws don’t only occur in the US. Here are some from the UK. I would love to hear the story that led to #6: “A pregnant woman can legally relieve herself anywhere she wants, including in a policeman’s helmet.”
Apparently my home state has recently decided that all women are perpetually pregnant, by law, as part of some absurd, draconian anti-choice law. I don’t know the details yet, but that seems to be the implication.
It is illegal to lie down and fall asleep in a cheese factory.
No horses are allowed into Fountain Inn unless they are wearing pants.
Ok, while we’re now talking about old laws that are not enforced, I offer you Massachusetts’ blasphemy law:
“Section 36. Whoever wilfully blasphemes the holy name of God by denying, cursing or contumeliously reproaching God, his creation, government or final judging of the world, or by cursing or contumeliously reproaching Jesus Christ or the Holy Ghost, or by cursing or contumeliously reproaching or exposing to contempt and ridicule, the holy word of God contained in the holy scriptures shall be punished by imprisonment in jail for not more than one year or by a fine of not more than three hundred dollars, and may also be bound to good behavior.”
Women aren’t allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia and in some places, can’t wear pants. This is probably my most hated one. Just to add – 90% of laws are lamebrain.
@Pied_Pfeffer ” Illegal for a woman to drive a car unless there is a man either running or walking in front ” I like that law! We’re moving to Tenn.
@Ron_C LOL! No points from me for that crack.
Sorry, though it was funny.
It seems we have new reulation for Goat herders. Goat herding, really? Is this a big problem in the US
It’s about time! Those goat herders were running amok.
I think I might find a job as a goat herder when I retire. Just think of it as a months long camping trip.
After reading both @Jaxk and @Pied_Pfeffer stories it is clear to me the reporters in question have never actually been shepherds or goat herders in the Rockies.
The ignorance in both stories is glaring.
The Fox news morning crew are spectacular for the length and breadth of their ignorance. Two dorky guys and a really mean spirited blond, what could go wrong?
Hey now, don’t bash goat herders, I’m a goose herder. lol
Not that I take prescription drugs (yet) but Americans can not buy prescription drugs from Canadian sources, even though the Canadians are willing and able to sell them.
@josie that has not been strictly true since 2006, unless it has changed again since the current administration took office.
@WestRiverrat Since I don’t take medications, I might stand corrected. Answer withdrawn.
In Minnesota, possession of two joints (enough to make more than 4 people high) is a petty misdemeanor.
Possession of 15 mg of Oxycodone (not enough to get high) is a felony.
@tom_g & @Blackberry These rules are necessary for protection. The anti-pot laws protect the wine, beer and liquor manufacturers; the sugar industry that supplies vintners and distillers; the tobacco industry; and the for-profit prison industry. They also protect a massive tax-funded war on drugs.
@SpatzieLover That one gets me steamed under the collar.
@Charles The carpool think I can at least understand. It’d require pulling over all cars using a carpool lane to ensure that at least two passengers were licensed drivers. But churches. I’m with you. They are one of the world’s biggest, most profitable businesses. Why can’t I set up a Church of the Almighty Dollar and get tax exempt status?
@Paradox25 Amen on that one. Go figure.
@marinelife That one bugs me too. I can grasp the right of salvage, but the time limit should at least ensure the original owner of the property is deceased.
@Coloma & @Trillian Oh lord, the Lobster rebellion of 1846. Thank goodness the Nevada Legislature has had the foresight to protect us from such a threat. Lobsters get quite an attitude when forced to live far from the ocean.
@GoldieAV16 That one sounds pretty silly, but in fairness to the City Council, when you hear why they passed it, it makes perfect sense in today’s litigious climate.
@Pied_Pfeffer If rule 1 actually exists, that’s a Blue Ribbon stupid law. But rule two at least ensures Frogs don’t die late at night.
@Coloma So it’s legal in California for a driverless car to tour the state so long as it stays below 60 MPH?
@Pied_Pfeffer Rule #6 makes perfect sense. They knew what would go viral if filmed and posted on YouTube.
(In the UK) A transsexual who legally changes their sex, and is married, must first annull the marriage, then change their legal sex on their ID etc, then if desired, they can exchange the marriage for a civil partnership. If they are already in a civil partnership the situation is reversed. This is because “marriage” is for heterosexual couples only and “civil partnership” is for homosexual couples only, even though the rights of each are identical.
@Pied_Pfeffer rule #6 makes sense to me – it allows for the making of porn movies, in which actors are paid. All them judges and lawmakers gotta get their fix of porn.
I just saw an old episode of Rawhide where Clint Eastwood was playing the piano and singing a love song. There should be a law against that.
Ooh a great one in my area. You can swim in our raging river without a life jacket but if you are on an inner tube you must wear a floatation device! Uh, I am IN a floatation device but swimmers can drown themsleves at will. lol
@Jaxk If singing badly is a crime, I’ll be doing time. :-)
@Coloma Time to float an amendment to that silly rule.
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