Foreign Policy Isn't Only Area Where French Seem Kooky

0 Comments | Insight on the News, Dec 8, 2003 | by Stephen Goode

Byline: Stephen Goode, INSIGHT

Foreign Policy Isn't Only Area Where French Seem Kooky

Andy Powell and Jeff Koon's excellent and entertaining Website www.DumbLaws.com is one of those sites for the people visits regularly. It lists laws state by state in the United States and in foreign countries that its founders regard as "dumb" and, for the most part, they truly are. They're funny, but the dumb laws are instructive, showing mankind's penchant for attempting by legislation to force almost any kind of behavior into existence, however unusual. The dumb laws also reveal a lot about the nation, state or locality that enacted them.

In France, for instance, "Between the hours of 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. 70 percent of music on the radio must be by French artists." That's not so surprising, of course, because of France's great pride in its own culture. But the following law may seem unusual in a nation reputed for its deep devotion to amor between the sexes: "It is illegal to kiss on railways in France."

In Paris, but not elsewhere in France, "An ashtray is considered to be a deadly weapon," which begs the question: Was this law passed because of lovers' quarrels where anything handy was hurled in the direction of the other?

And no mention of French laws would be complete without noting that in France, "No pig may be addressed as Napoleon by its owner." For the people deeply regrets such overregulation, even among the French, since Napoleon seems such a perfect porker name, apt in every way, except perhaps that it casts aspersions on swine.

Kobe, Britney Spears, Martha Stewart Top 'B-List' of Celebrities

The one-man conservative think tank (and wit) Alan Caruba is a long-standing friend of for the people, as evidenced by his picture/ profile in this magazine [April 1-14]. Each year Caruba's highly cerebral Boring Institute, situated in Maplewood, N.J., issues its selections for the "Most Boring Celebrities of the Year," and it now has come up with its 20th list.

It's the kind of top-10 list that most Americans, perhaps all, make either subconsciously or in full awareness because each of us is inundated 24 hours every day, seven days every week, with "news" and information about the members of that vastly too-much-talked-about class of folks dubbed celebrities. It apparently is through their (mostly banal) deeds and highly trumpeted scandals that the rest of the nation is supposed to live vicariously. "One can always count on Hollywood and the worlds of sports and politics for celebrities who, for whatever reason, experience major media overexposure," Caruba tells for the people. "And too much is just too boring."

Here's Caruba's latest top 10. Readers no doubt will have their own nominations for the list.

* Kobe Bryant: A little

sex and a lot of grief.

* Scott Peterson: Wife got murdered; he grew a beard and got arrested.

* Britney Spears: Competing with Madonna to be the next "queen of sleaze."

* Martha Stewart: Indicted for being famous and fabulous.

* Ex-governor Gray Davis: Currently house-hunting in Mexico.

* Arnold Schwarzenegger: Conan takes California; vows to terminate taxes.

* Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez: Too famous for their own good.

* Ruben Studdard: An "American idol" who never was seen again.

* Jacques Chirac: The president of France is just too French!

* The New York Times: All the lies that are unfit to print.

Stephen Goode is a senior writer for Insight magazine.