Do you sometimes get the feeling that the folks who populate our legislatures, no matter the party, either sit on their brains or just don’t bother bring them to work?

I often hear people wishing that someone of intelligence would run; someone of substance like those that their parents or grandparents talk about.

Apparently our politicians have been sitting or forgetting for a lot longer than people realize, so the good old days may not be all that great.

Of course, people break the law all the time—and sometimes that’s a good thing.

In 1760 Philadelphia passed a law making it illegal to put pretzels in bags. I wonder if they sold them in boxes…

Baseball took a major hit in Oklahoma, where it is illegal to the ball over the fence or out of a ballpark. If still enforced I wonder if it would cut down on steroid use…

Driving has generated many laws since autos were invented and here are some of my favorites.

California law prohibits a woman from driving a car while dressed in a housecoat. I wonder what kind of dress was banned for men…

California may sound sexist and petty, but lawmakers in Tennessee and New York obviously have absolutely no faith in their constituents. What makes me so sure?

Tennessee has a statute making it illegal to drive a car while sleeping.

And if that isn’t silly enough, in New York it’s against the law for a blind person to drive a car. I wonder if they can legally drive other types of transportation…

A real favorite dates back to 1930 when the great state of Virginia passed a law that prohibits corrupt practices or bribery by any person other than political candidates. I wonder when that law was extended to the rest of the citizens…

But it is California that takes the cake California, where dirty dancing was (probably) invented, has a statute dating back to 1925 that makes it illegal to wiggle while dancing. I wonder if that extends to walking and other forms of locomotion…

One caveat, it’s possible that some of these laws have been repealed and others could be urban legends, but as far as know they are real.

Image credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/biscuitsmlp/3044867827/

This entry was posted on Sunday, February 20th, 2011 at 1:10 am and is filed under Oddball Facts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
Tags: politicians
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