12 Crazy Laws You Won’t Believe Exist
12.
Spread the Word Imagine a time when the dairy industry was
such a powerful political force in the United States that it was able to pressure lawmakers
into passing laws against what it perceived to be its single greatest enemy - imitation
butter.
That’s exactly what the Missouri State Assembly did in 1895, categorizing the 19th Century’s
most enticing non-butter butter products as contraband. 31 other states had similar laws
on the books by 1902, but as the popularity of products like yellow margarine grew - particularly
during World War I - such measures were repealed.
What makes Missouri different is that the state didn’t repeal its outdated margarine
ban until 2010.
Until then, private dealers selling such products technically could have suffered severe repercussions:
a $500 fine for repeat “offenders,” a $100 fine for a first-time slip-up, and, potentially
a year in jail.
11.
“A Kiss is a Terrible Thing to Waste” Nations and municipalities all over the world
have laws against the public display of actions that may be considered lewd.
But in 2013, a man and a woman visiting Dubai discovered just how broadly the definition
of the term “lewd” reaches in the United Arab Emirates, where they were reported to
police by an onlooker for “kissing passionately” on a beach.
The man’s defence was that he only appeared from a distance to be kissing the woman when
he was actually performing CPR as his companion suffered an asthma attack.
The police did not believe his story.
The couple was arrested and placed on trial by the Dubai Misdemeanor Court.
They were then sentenced to a year in prison and subsequent deportation.
10.
You Better Believe It The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution
guarantees the freedom of speech and religion to all citizens, but seven U.S. states - Arkansas,
Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas - had their
own ideas over the course of history.
In each of these states, there remain laws barring atheists from holding public office
or, in some cases, serving on juries.
In Pennsylvania, while there is no direct prohibition of atheists in public life, the
commonwealth's constitution does declare political candidates who don’t believe in “a future
state of rewards and punishments” unqualified for public posts.
While the Supreme Court ruled unanimously in 1961 that such laws were unconstitutional,
none of these states have officially rescinded their measures against non-believers.
9.
Outside Interference In 1999, Canada’s parliament passed a revised
version of the Elections Act - a broad-sweeping set of rules dictating the nation's regulations
of its democratic processes.
Included within the newly introduced and approved language was a statute stating that non-Canadians
cannot encourage voters to support or oppose any particular candidate or cause.
The listed penalty for violating this law is six months in jail and a $5,000 fine.
Many have criticized the law as too general, vague or unenforceable.
But the federal agency Elections Canada has taken the step of publicly clarifying that
the law only applies to those who would attempt to induce Canadian citizens into voting a
certain way in exchange for a tangible benefit - a bribe, in other words.
This nonetheless keeps the need for the law in question given that such bribery was already
illegal for citizens and noncitizens alike.
8.
Undue Stress Have you ever wished you could pursue legal
action against someone simply for hurting your feelings or causing emotional distress
through their words?
In the Philippines, you can.
Under Article 287 of the country’s penal code, “unjust vexation” can result in
a punishment of temporary confinement up to 30 days and a fine of up to 200 pesos.
While similar offenses can be combatted through litigation in the Western World, the Philippines
is unique in that this law is broad enough to allow citizens to press charges in almost
any social situation, a likely headache for law enforcement.
7.
The Most Dangerous Game Sometimes it is possible to have too much
fun.
Thankfully, the North Carolina General Assembly took action against a favorite pastime among
its most frivolous sinners - bingo.
That’s right, in North Carolina, bingo is heavily regulated.
According to Article 37 of the state’s general police regulations, no game of bingo is permitted
to last longer than five hours and no two games of bingo can be played within the same
48-hour period.
As is common with such laws, it is unclear to what extent this measure can be enforced.
No raids of nursing homes are known to have occurred since the law’s passage.
6.
Spit!
In Singapore, what you’re chewing is absolutely the government’s business.
The small island nation has a heavily-enforced law against non-medical chewing gum, especially
for those who dispose of it by spitting it out onto the ground.
The infringement carries a penalty as severe as two years worth of jail time or a fine
as high as the equivalent to $100,000.
Only gum of a medicinal or therapeutic value is allowed, though it absolutely must be thrown
away properly.
This notorious law remains a big head-scratcher for visitors to Singapore, where public cleanliness
is a significant cultural preoccupation.
5.
Family Bonding Who hasn’t dodged a call from their parents
or waited a long time to respond to one of their ambiguous texts filled with poorly-chosen
emojis?
Some adults even procrastinate when it comes to visiting their parents.
That’s heavily frowned upon in China, a nation whose culture heavily emphasizes parental
reverence.
In 2013, the Chinese government instituted a law requiring anyone with parents over the
age of 60 to pay “frequent” visits to their parents, with many officials advising
a minimum number of two visits per year.
While it is widely considered symbolic, the law does further enable parents to sue their
children for greater financial, logistical or emotional support.
4.
Finding Love Can Be Taxing In 1821, the state of Missouri, a place known
for bizarre public policies, placed a yearly tax of $1 on unmarried men between the ages
of 21 and 50.
Known as the “bachelor tax,” critics of the measure considered it a classic example
of paternalistic incentives imposed at the state level.
While Missouri stopped collecting the tax at the end of the Civil War, the language
remains in the state’s tax code.
3.
Order Out In Louisiana, the heinous crime of ordering
a pizza and designating another person’s address as the delivery location can result
in a fine of $500, a six-month jail term or both.
While the idea of an “unwanted pizza” seems unthinkable in the United States of
America, it was considered enough of a widespread prank to warrant legislative action by the
state legislature in 1999.
Either way, remember to tip your pizza guy, whether you were expecting him or not.
2.
Tough to Bear Get ready for another gem from the great state
of Missouri, where bear wrestling is apparently a much bigger problem than most people would
expect.
According to chapter 578 of Missouri’s revised statutes, an individual or group is committing
a crime not only for engaging in the act of wrestling a bear, but also if they: perform
surgery on a bear that could lead to enhancement for the sake of bear wrestling activities;
engage in wrestling-related training with a bear; possess, sell or purchase a bear with
the knowledge it will be used for wrestling purposes; accepts or collects admission fees
for bear wrestling spectacles; or composes or posts an advertisement related to bear
wrestling.
And in case you were wondering, it is also illegal to own the property on which bear
wrestling activities occur.
But then again, what’s the first rule of Fight Club?
1.
Set it Off (But Don’t) In Chico, California, detonating a nuclear
device within city limits is punishable with a $500 fine.
No, seriously.
According to the language of the official municipal policy, the “testing, maintenance
and storage” of nuclear weapons is forbidden, though it remains unclear how prosecution
- or any other aspect of societal functions, for that matter - could possibly be pursued
within a city once a nuclear device has been set off.
The law arose from the anti-nuclear movement of the 1980s and is also considered symbolic.
Still, a $500 fine combined with the harsh conditions of nuclear fallout would make for
a pretty stressful week.