Posted on 11/06/2007 2:22:18 PM PST by Aristotelian
A little-known law which prohibits people dying while in the Houses of Parliament has been voted the UK's most ludicrous piece of legislation. Another law which states it is treason to use a postage stamp upside down was placed in second place by those polled by UKTV Gold.
The most absurd international law was judged to be in the US state of Ohio, where it is illegal to get fish drunk.
The 3,931 people asked selected the laws from a shortlist of bizarre rules. . . .
The UK's top 10 most ridiculous British laws were listed as:
1. It is illegal to die in the Houses of Parliament (27%)
2. It is an act of treason to place a postage stamp bearing the British king or queen's image upside-down (7%)
3. It is illegal for a woman to be topless in Liverpool except as a clerk in a tropical fish store (6%)
4. Eating mince pies on Christmas Day is banned (5%)
5. If someone knocks on your door in Scotland and requires the use of your toilet, you are required to let them enter (4%)
6. In the UK a pregnant woman can legally relieve herself anywhere she wants, including in a policeman's helmet (4%)
7. The head of any dead whale found on the British coast automatically becomes the property of the King, and the tail of the Queen (3.5%)
8. It is illegal not to tell the tax man anything you do not want him to know, but legal not to tell him information you do not mind him knowing (3%)
9. It is illegal to enter the Houses of Parliament wearing a suit of armour (3%)
10. It is legal to murder a Scotsman within the ancient city walls of York, but only if he is carrying a bow and arrow (2%) False teeth
Other bizarre foreign laws voted by those polled included:
In Ohio, it is illegal to get a fish drunk (9%)
In Indonesia, the penalty for masturbation is decapitation (8%)
A male doctor in Bahrain can only examine the genitals of a woman in the reflection of a mirror (7%)
In Switzerland, a man may not relieve himself standing up after 10pm (6%)
It is illegal to be blindfolded while driving a vehicle in Alabama (6%)
In Florida, unmarried women who parachute on a Sunday could be jailed (6%)
Women in Vermont must obtain written permission from their husbands to wear false teeth (6%)
In Milan, it is a legal requirement to smile at all times, except during funerals or hospital visits (5%)
In France, it is illegal to name a pig Napoleon (4%)
Here is one: It is illegal for British subjects to arm themselves against intruders or others seeking to steal their property or injure them.
There must be a lot of lawbreakers in Ohio...........
Dueling is legal on the Boston Common on a Sunday if the Governor is present. Me Likey.
how about this ludicrous law: high taxes even if it results in lower revenue just in order for the rich to pay their fair share
Well, my weekend is shot. I guess I'll have to drink it all myself.
York still nurses a grudge against that Wallace lad, or so it would seem.
Turns out there’s a website devoted to nutty laws, http://crazylaws.com/
Here are a few:
In Alaska it is illegal to whisper in someone’s ear while they are moose hunting.
Little Rock: Dogs may not bark after 6 PM.
In Los Angeles courts it is illegal to cry on the witness stand.
In Colorado it’s now legal to remove the furniture tags that say, “Do Not Remove Under Penalty of Law.”
In Delaware you may not sell dead people for money without a license.
In Florida, men may not be seen publicly in any kind of strapless gown.
In Quitman, Georgia, It is illegal for a chicken to cross the road.
Actually that sounds like pretty good advice to me. We don't have that law in Idaho and it shows.
In Los Angeles courts it is illegal to cry on the witness stand.
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that actually makes sense. jury manipulation
I like this one:
The Chico, California, City Council enacted a ban on nuclear weapons, setting a $500 fine for anyone detonating one within city limits.
Above URL is to The 50 States and international dumb laws.
International
Thailand
Turkey
Philippines
Switzerland
Sweden
Korea, South
Singapore
United Kingdom
Norway
Cambodia
Netherlands
Morocco
Mexico
Japan
Italy
Australia
Greece
Belgium
Canada
China
Denmark
France
Germany
Ireland
Israel
South Africa
Swaziland
Zimbabwe
Finland
Explaining, no doubt, the extreme popularity of tropical fish among Liverpudlians.
I wonder if Rudy will conform to the dress code.
Liverpool strip clubs have a two angelfish cover charge.
The problem with that site is that a lot of them are fake/misrepresented. For example, where it's illegal to disrupt church or an assembly, whether by whispering...or other means...the site says that whispering in church is illegal.
That's like saying "driving is illegal" if there's a speed limit.
Here's another old story on UK laws... When the law is an ass
ROFL! Great line!
bookmark
Exactly. And in a world ruled by common sense, that would be 1st on the list. Sadly, our English friends have yet to awaken to the fact that it is a God given right to protect themselves, no matter what the left says about the fact.
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