History Main / LoonyLaws

* As it was superstition in Tsarist Russia (and Latin American countries like Argentina) that the seventh subsequent son or daughter of a family would be [[EnfantTerrible a werewolf/warlock/witch]], a law was passed that would make the tsar the godparent of these children so that they wouldn't be abandoned.

* Creator/PattonOswalt's routine "You Are Only Allowed Twenty Birthdays" proposes -- among other things -- that anyone who lives to the age of 120 be automatically made President of the United States. He gives examples of the sort of laws such a person, presumably senile, would pass ("Starting today, everybody has to put four cans of ravioli in their pants! Starting today, everybody has to marry a pelican!"), but ultimately argues that [[TakeThat this would still be preferable]] to things under then-president UsefulNotes/GeorgeHWBush.

* ''Series/HenryDanger'' "Christmas Danger" reveals Swellview has a book of rather stupid and insane rules which consider certain mundane things illegal, such as not wearing a hairnet when serving food, taking a picture of a rabbit without a permit, eating hard ice cream on a cone, and wearing more than one hat at a time. "Secret Room" also reveals it's illegal to drop a single bit of soup on the floor, even if it's an accident.

** In "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS16E14TheSevenBeerSnitch The Seven Beer Snitch]]", Mr. Burns opens a for-profit prison, and conspires with Chief Wiggum to fill it by enforcing bizarre laws. Homer is arrested for kicking an old can in the street five times... [[{{Irony}} because he wasn't accepted for a guard job at the prison he is to serve his sentence in]]. Another law that makes it unlawful to be in public without hats is also mentioned, and they are all printed in a compendium of silly laws.

* ''Film/{{Bananas}}'':

* America has outlawed the sale of [=McVities=] Digestive biscuits.

* [[https://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20090225 One page]] of ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'' has Gil mention in passing that the "Polar Ice Lords" have a tax on fire. He contrasts this and a couple other examples to show TheEmpire is [[WhatTheRomansHaveDoneForUs pretty reasonable compared to other options]]. However the Polar Ice Lords are yet to appear in the comic proper.

* In the United Kingdom it's illegal to handle salmon under suspicious circumstances. [[NoodleIncident The law doesn't specify what counts as "suspicious circumstances".]]

* In Boise, Idaho it's illegal to go fishing while riding on the back of a Giraffe. '''''Why,''''' I have no idea.

* In ''Webcomic/ArthurKingOfTimeAndSpace'', Arthur in the baseline and space arcs has a tendency to make decrees based on things that annoy him at the time, which sound completely arbitary out of context. Many of them involve groceries, but one ("[[http://www.arthurkingoftimeandspace.com/3222.htm No serving of alcohol to cows on a Tuesday]]") leaves Kay and Mordred deciding [[YouDoNOTWantToKnow they probably don't want to hear the context]].

* In ''Webcomic/ArthurKingOfTimeAndSpace'', Arthur in the baseline and space arcs has a tendency to make decrees based on things that annoy him at the time, which sound completely arbitary out of context. Many of them involve groceries, but one ("[[http://www.arthurkingoftimeandspace.com/3222.htm No selling of alcohol to cows on a Tuesday]]") leaves Kay and Mordred deciding [[YouDoNOTWantToKnow they probably don't want to hear the context]].

* Creator/PattonOswalt's routine "You Are Only Allowed Twenty Birthdays" proposes -- among other things -- that anyone who lives to the age of 120 be automatically made President of the United States. He gives examples of the sort of laws such a person, presumably senile, would pass ("Starting today, everybody has to put four cans of ravioli in their pants! Starting today, everybody has to marry a pelican!"), but ultimately argues that [[TakeThat this would still be preferable]] to things under then-president George W. Bush.

* Wiki/SCPFoundation: [[https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-1434 SCP-1434]] is a brick that causes the nearest small town to enact and enforce increasingly bizarre laws.

* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'': The titular town was founded by (ex-) President Quentin Trembley, and his lunacy was reflected with such things as a law that allowed humans to marry woodpeckers. In the first season finale, Gideon steals the deed to the Mystery Shack, and is instantly recognized as its legal owner. The show's creator jokingly suggested Gravity Falls has a "Finders Keepers" Law where physically possessing an object immediately makes you its rightful owner, even if it was obviously stolen.[[labelnote:note]]In the actual show Gideon claimed Stan gave him the deed, and was just [[VillainWithGoodPublicity so well-liked]] the police believed this despite no evidence or reason Stan would do so.[[/labelnote]]

May involve a lot of FelonyMisdemeanor or DisproportionateRetribution. If the law permits deeds that aren't just wacky but downright wrong, that’s LegalizedEvil.

** In "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS5E8TheLostTreasureOfGriffonstone The Lost Treasure of Griffonstone]]", there is a "No Singing" sign next to the ancient library in Griffonstone, for no explained reason. This causes a serious case of culture shock for Pinkie Pie, since ponies like her have the habit of bussting into song at the drop of a hat.

** Ankh-Morpork has a law against ''metaphors'', once memorably phrased as "if you say someone has a face that can launch a thousand ships, you had better have the passenger manifests." Lord Vetinari is even said to ''enforce'' this law from time to time, most noticeably by requiring the creation of the Pork Futures Warehouse, a place to store pork that doesn't exist yet. (Vetinari is entirely sane, but likes to keep oter people off balance.)

** The strip [[http://oglaf.com/assorted-fruits/ "Assorted Fruits of Wrath"]] has a crusading army get blown away by its own god for violating a scriptural law about not opening the wrong end of a banana (no mention of which end that is). (Also, as their enemy's commander notes, their religion also [[RunningGag prohibits wearing mixed fabrics]].)

* The Kingdom of Khura'in from ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneySpiritOfJustice'' has the Defense Culpability Act, which says that if a defendant is found guilty of a crime, their defense attorney receives the same sentence, as the Khura'inese legal system considers them an accessory to said crime. Since Khura'in's courts are known to hand out death penalties ([[WouldHurtAChild even against children]]), the DC Act has essentially resulted in a pogrom against lawyers.