Weird & wacky laws

[Mitchell Madness]

Thought it would be interesting to hear of some unusual laws people have heard of or experienced

I have a friend in a small town called Bristow, in one of the Carolina's in the USA (always get them confused)
Anyway, that town had a law up until the 60's which required any cafe serving a caffeinated beverage to serve it with an almond
Failure to do so was a prison able offense


Sanfransisco in the USA, nudity is apparently legal in public places, as long as you are not aroused, at which time it becomes illegal

 

[ioppolo]

I got a book when I was younger that had a bunch of stuff like this in it, a few of the top of my head.

Brainerd, Minnesota: Every man must grow a beard.

Virginia: All bathtubs must be outside, not inside the house.

Arkansas: A man is allowed to beat his wife, but no more then once a month.

 

[DapperDon]

In Chester, a person is permitted to shoot a Welshman with a bow and arrow, as long as he is inside the city walls after midnight.

 

[Sterge]

I have read articles apparently it is legal to be topless in I think new york city there are videos and serious news articles floating around about people testing this law

 

[FoolCat]

My friend also used to have a book of weird laws and would reel them out every so often. One of them, I have no idea where, it was illegal to swim on land.

 

[Illinois Nazi]

They cleaned out the Police Act in WA a few years back as it was originally enacted in the 1890s or thereabouts. Up until then, there were still laws in WA against riding a horse furiously through town and firing a cannon down the main street. Taxi drivers were also required by law to carry hay with them at all times.

I believe it remains an offence to gather guano without a licence.

 

[beta_condition]

It is illegal to force a kangaroo to drink 6 beers.

 

[Mr Reliable]

Is it illegal to reverse out of a driveway? What's the fine?

 

[Hard_to_Beat]

Knock yourselves out:

http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/vic/consol_act/dpacsa1981422/

 

[Admiral Byng]

I believe it remains an offence to gather guano without a licence.

I heard about that the other day on the radio, but I reckon it's still a perfectly sensible law.

Historically guano was a resource of strategic importance, it was the main raw source of nitrates which were needed to make gunpowder and explosives. That is, until the Haber Process allowed them to be made synthetically from atmospheric nitrogen. Still, guano is important as a source of fertiliser (fertiliser and explosives have a shared history because they share common raw ingredients), and any major deposit of it should be regulated so the government get their share of royalties if it gets dug up. Also, lots of guano deposits are still likely to be existing nesting colonies for sea-birds, so we don't want people just going in there and digging them up willy-nilly - and licence to mine it would have to be subject to proper environmental approvals.

 

[rayven]

evidently the feds in America have the ability to turn off iphones and such, when they deem it necessary (protests/attacks)