...especially when city councils start proposing new laws and citizens have new fight in them.

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In Walnut Creek, a city near Oakland and Berkeley that is a yuppie paradise (almost more so than Los Gatos), the proposal from some groups is to change the name of the annual celebrations for Easter. This would also require all stores and the like to refrain from using the word Easter.

No more Easter celebrations, Easter eggs, or Easter baskets. Substitute the word "Spring". So it's a Spring celebration, Spring eggs and Spring baskets. Yes, get rid of Easter and call it Spring. Apparently there are some religions that are taking offense to calling it Easter.

Riiight. I respect that, but I still think it's stupid. Easter has been around for *years*.

So, a co-worker and I and the mad woozle woman all want to start hiding plastic easter eggs that have been Krazy Glue-d shut all over the city with the words "This is an EASTER Egg" along with a basket of them at the steps of City Hall. If I could figure out a way to do it without getting arrested for littering or terrorism, I would in a heartbeat.

I thank the mad woozle woman for pointing this one out to me on The Colbert Report

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In Belmont, a place most of you haven't heard of which is part of an affluent part of the San Francisco peninsula, they have decided that banning smoking is a good thing.

We're not just talking smoking in public places. We're talking *all* smoking. Including that in your closed up car that you own. They're joining the insanity of Contra Costa County (where the aforementioned Walnut Creek is) who proposed a proposal to ban smoking everywhere, including a resident's own backyard.

Now, I think it's great that these cities are trying to look out for their resident's good health, but at some point you have to draw a line in the sand. Banning smoking from someone's own backyard? Ok, they're doing this to reduce emissions and pollution in the air.

Fantastic. So, where are the bans on hair spray, all modes of motorized transportation (bye bye BART), and restaurants?

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Shoot... there was one more that was really insane, but I've forgotten it. Oh well, I'm sure I'll remember it at some point and write another story about silly.com insanity.

Until then, have a great weekend!

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edited 7:45am
Now I remember... the ACLU is suing the Napa Valley Unified School District (yes, the Napa that's Napa Valley, as in wine...) on behalf of a 14 year old student, her parents and a couple of her classmates. The reason?

The girl was suspended from school because she wore socks with a cartoon character on them, which is against the school dress code. They're claiming the dress code is overbroad, unconstitionally vague and too restrictive.

Excuse me? Too broad *and* too restrictive? Unconstitionally vague?

The dress code of the school requires students to wear clothes with solid colors in blue, white, green, yellow, khaki, gray, brown and black. No denim is allowed. Permitted fabrics are cotton twill, corduroy and chino. So apparently acrylic blends aren't allowed. How environmentally friendly of them. There's a lot of room for movement in this list, and while it *is* vague it's still reasonable.

The student in question wore socks with Tigger on them (yes, from Winnie-The-Pooh), along with a denim skirt and a brown shirt with pink border. Pink is against the rules listed above, but apparently it is the socks that torqued the school. It's *TIGGER*. Come on.

But she broke the rules. I get that. And she should have to deal with the consequences. Getting the ACLU involved? Over socks? Come on, her rights weren't violated, but apparently they seem to think so. Freedom of expression or some such nonsense. The student's younger sister was also cited, but she was wearing a shirt with the words "Jesus Freak" on them - that sounds like a much bigger transgression that the ACLU should put their weight behind, instead of the socks. I'm sure it's the media that jumped on the insanity of the socks instead of the freedom of expression/religion thing that the younger sister was after.

The school is supposedly going to fight this. I think they should just lay down and give up on this one and apologize...

...and promptly institute a uniform policy. That would solve everything.

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Ok, now I'm done. I really mean it this time. Have a great weekend!