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-Short Attention Span Theater-
Fifty Bizarre U.S. Laws
2010-06-11
Ahh, how I long for the stupid legislation of the good ol' days.
I've never claimed to have extensive knowledge of U.S. legislation throughout history, but it's safe to say that I and most people I associate with are law-abiding citizens ... or not. As it turns out, every state in this country has at least one wacky legal stipulation that could land residents in hot water if they don't comply. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Alabama
It's illegal to wear a fake mustache that causes laughter in church.
Posted by:gorb

#11  So what Deacon, Gold is only a proton away from Lead.
Posted by: Redneck Jim   2010-06-11 22:52  

#10  Margerine is only a molecule or two away from being a plastic.
Posted by: Deacon Blues   2010-06-11 19:39  

#9  #2 Ditto here on Guam when I was growing up in the 1960's and early 1970's. Many Locals gave the "evil eye" of suspicion as per fake butter = margarine.
Posted by: JosephMendiola   2010-06-11 19:35  

#8  Actually, Ravel's "Concerto for the left hand" was composed for a pianist friend who had lost his right hand during WWI.
That happens to be true. aul Wittgenstein (November 5, 1887 – March 3, 1961) was an Austrian-born concert pianist, who became known for his ability to play with just his left hand, after he lost his right arm during the First World War. He devised novel techniques, including pedal and hand-movement combinations, that allowed him to play chords previously regarded as impossible for a five-fingered pianist. He commissioned several pieces for the left hand from prominent composers, including Richard Strauss, Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Paul Hindemith, Sergei Prokofiev, Maurice Ravel and, later, Benjamin Britten.
Posted by: Deacon Blues   2010-06-11 16:45  

#7  Actually, Ravel's "Concerto for the left hand" was composed for a pianist friend who had lost his right hand during WWI.

Ada a stewardess sez garbage
Posted by: Shipman   2010-06-11 15:57  

#6  When I lived in San Francisco, there was still a law on the books prohibiting "unsightly" people from being on the streets. Nothing implied GolfBravo, just saying.
Posted by: Mercutio   2010-06-11 13:39  

#5  It's OK. They're progressive chimps.
Posted by: gorb   2010-06-11 11:45  

#4  The graphic is insulting and demeaning ... to chimps.
Posted by: xbalanke   2010-06-11 10:18  

#3  In the 50s and 60s, you couldn't buy margarine colored yellow in Wisconsin. There were signs at the Illinois state line advertising colored oleo for sale, and the stores did good business. My cantankerous, stingy grandfather looked grumpier than usual when he sat down to the task of adding the yellow food coloring to the white oleo to make it look more appetizing.

The Arizona law about cutting down cactus is not totally out of left field, IIRC. People have been poaching and cutting saguaros and other species, causing drastic reductions in cactus populations.

Speaking of "Out in left field": The original "left field" that gave its name to this expression was the old ballpark in Chicago on Damen Ave. That was the site of the last Cubs World Series victory in 1908. It was torn down a few years later to make room for the University of Illinois hospitals, after the Cubs moved to Wrigley Field. The University built its first mental health sanatorium just beyond the left field fence at that ballpark. So something coming out of left field was coming from the direction of the sanatorium!
Posted by: mom   2010-06-11 10:03  

#2  Unless a customer specifically requests it, margarine may not be substituted for butter in a restaurant.

I remember one my grandmother's friends telling us that 'Oleo Margarine' (artificial yellow coloring added - as in all 'yellow' margarine) was a communist plot. You couldn't even buy 'yellow' margarine in Wisconsin until the late '60s.
Posted by: Mullah Richard   2010-06-11 08:06  

#1  One-armed piano players must perform for free.

Actually, Ravel's "Concerto for the left hand" was composed for a pianist friend who had lost his right hand during WWI.
Posted by: JFM   2010-06-11 07:31  

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