The Last of Interesting Yet Strange Laws

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A local ordinance in Atwoodville, Connecticut prohibits people from playing Scrabble while waiting for a politician to speak.

The state legislature in North Dakota has rejected a proposal to erect signs specifically warning motorists not to throw human waste onto the road side. Maintenance workers report at least 20 incidents of road crews being "sprayed with urine after rupturing urine-filled plastic bottles that became swollen in the hot sun." Opponents of the measure say they're afraid the signs would discourage tourism.

Found on Axius Sno-Off Automobile Windshield cover: "Caution: Never drive with the cover on your windshield."

Found on a box of Kellogg's Pop-Tarts: "Warning: Pastry Filling May Be Hot When Heated"

Found on the instruction sheet of a Conair Pro Style 1600 hair dryer: "WARNING: Do not use in shower. Never use while sleeping."

Found on Bat Man The Animated Series Armor Set Halloween costume box: "PARENT: Please exercise caution, mask and chest plate are not protective; cape does not enable wearer to fly."

Found in a television set's owner's manual: "Do not pour liquids into your television set."

Found on the handle of a hammer: "Caution: Do not use this hammer to strike any solid object."

Found on a butane lighter: "Warning: Flame may cause fire."

In most places, when a drawbridge is open, the only land vehicle that can claim priority over boats is a truck hauling the US mail. This option is seldom if ever exercised, of course.

In 1388, English Parliament banned waste disposal in public waterways and ditches.

In 1996, Christmas caroling was banned at two major malls in Pensacola, Florida. Apparently, shoppers and merchants complained the carolers were too loud and took up too much space.

In Atlanta, Georgia, it is illegal to tie a giraffe to a telephone pole or street lamp.

The ship, the Queen Elizabeth 2, should always be written as QE2. QEII is the actual queen.

Quebec and Newfoundland are the only two provinces which do not allow personalized license plates.

A Chilean man who has been stopped from voting in three elections because officials keep insisting he is dead said he was tired of arguing and would never try to vote again. "I'm tired of complaining without any success. I think this is the last time I am going to bother," said Ernesto Alvear, 74. For the third time in an election, Alvear was told by officials in the port city of Valparaiso that he could not vote because, officially, he had been dead for almost 10 years. The mix-up was due to the death of another man with the same name, forcing Alvear to provide skeptical officials with documents proving he is alive.

During World War I, the punishment for homosexuality in the French army was execution.

During World War II, bakers in the United States were ordered to stop selling sliced bread for the duration of the war on January 18, 1943. Only whole loaves were made available to the public. It was never explained how this action helped the war effort.

In Sweden, when leaving someone's home, wait until you get to the doorway to step outside before putting on your coat. To do so earlier suggests you are eager to leave. When entering or departing a Russian home, it is considered very bad form to shake hands across the threshold.

In Germany, shaking hands with the other hand in a pocket is considered impolite. In Mali, men shake hands with women only if women offer their hand first. The handshake is often done with the left hand touching the other person's elbow as well.

During the time of Peter the Great, any Russian man who wore a beard was required to pay a special tax.

At the first professional baseball game, the umpire was fined 6 cents for swearing.

To pass U.S. Army basic training young female recruits must do 17 pushups in two minutes. Males must do 40 pushups in two minutes.

In Hartford, Connecticut, you may not, under any circumstances, cross the street walking on your hands.

Mailing an entire building has been illegal in the U.S. since 1916 when a man mailed a 40,000-ton brick house across Utah to avoid high freight rates.

Snoring is prohibited in Massachusetts unless all bedroom windows are closed and securely locked. It is also illegal to go to bed without first having a full bath.

Women in Florida may be fined for falling asleep under a hair dryer, as can the salon owner.

It is legal in North Dakota to shoot an Indian on horseback, provided you are in a covered wagon.

The mummified hand of a notary public, chopped off for falsely certifying a document, has been on display in the city hall of Munster, Germany, as a warning to other notaries for 400 years.

The curtain or veil used by some Hindus and Moslems to seclude or hide their women from strangers is called a "purdah."

Margaret Sanger was jailed for a month, in 1917, in a workhouse for founding a clinic that dispensed contraceptives.

In the Middle Ages, the highest court in France ordered the execution of a cow for injuring a human.

A girl, in the Vacococha tribe of Peru, to prepare her for marriage at the age of 12, is placed in a basket in the hut of her prospective in-laws and must remain suspened over an open fire night and day for 3 months.

The Spanish Inquisition once condemned the entire Netherlands to death for heresy.

During the eighteenth century, books that were considered offensive were sometimes punished by being whipped.

In the marriage ceremony of the ancient Inca Indians of Peru, the couple was considered officially wed when they took off their sandals and handed them to each other.

In 1968, a convention of beggars in Dacca, India, passed a resolution demanding that the minimum amount of alms be fixed at 15 paisa (three cents).

Because of heavy traffic congestion, Julius Caesar banned all wheeled vehicles from Rome during daylight hours.

Talking on a cellular phone while driving is against the law in Israel.

In Milan, Italy, there is a law on the books that requires a smile on the face of all citizens at all times. Exemptions include time spent visiting patients in hospitals or attending funerals. Otherwise, the fine is $100 if they are seen in public without a smile on their face.

The minimum age set in the U.S. Constitution for the President of the United States is 35.

In Athens, Greece, a driver's license can be taken away by law if the driver is deemed either "unbathed" or "poorly dressed".

Impotence is grounds for divorce in 24 U.S. states.

The murder rate in the Unted States is 200 times greater than in Japan. In Japan no private citizen can buy a handgun legally.

The movie 'Cleopatra', starring Elizabeth Taylor, was banned from Egypt in 1963 because she was a Jewish convert.

Golf was banned in England in 1457 because it was considered a distraction from the serious pursuit of archery.

It is illegal to marry the spouse of a grandparent in Maine, Maryland, South Carolina, and Washington, DC.