It seems more than a little odd that Italy is leading the charge against individual freedom to build sandcastles.
According to a recent BBC article at least one Italian mayor is looking to curb an individual’s freedom to wear revealing clothing, something which strikes me as more than a little odd, given the history of the country and Milan’s status in the fashion industry.
[quote] …a tough new dress code which would effectively outlaw everything from miniskirts to low-cut jeans when people walk around Castellammare di Stabia, our correspondent adds. Mr Bobbio, from the centre-right People of Freedom party, says he wants to target people who are “rowdy, unruly or simply badly behaved”. There will also be a ban on sunbathing, playing football in public places, and blasphemy, if the proposals are approved at a council meeting on Monday.[/quote]
It seems that in the name of reducing federal authority, a significant amount of power has been handed down and codified, protecting the citizenry from such anti-social behaviors as
[quote][building] sandcastles, kissing in cars, feeding stray cats, wooden clogs and the use of lawn mowers at weekends. [/quote]
Between that and the French ban on burqas, I look forward to the approaching moment when we’ll all be wearing tasteful unitards a la Star Trek. Of course I do mean The Next Generation because clearly the original series just wouldn’t fly. Oops. Forgot about Troi. Guess Star Trek is just plain out.