Published: May 05, 2008 10:50 am            

Monica Green: Cupcake protecting and other odd laws

A new law that went into effect Jan. 1 bans smoking in most public places in Fort Worth. Many businesses and some people are upset about it. I won’t go into my opinions about that law.

Some see it as a “dumb” law. But this is just one of several laws in Texas that can be considered strange or unneeded.

In Texas anyone who wishes to hold a public office must acknowledge the existence of a Supreme Being. This is in Section 4 of the Bill of Rights of the Texas Constitution.

Article 6, Section 6 allows voters to be privileged from arrest if they are going to or returning from voting. Guess that means even criminals are allowed to vote.

In the city of Clarendon it is illegal to dust any public building with a feather duster.

Oh, and if you feel like selling your arm or some other part of your body for extra cash, don’t! That’s illegal too. This law even goes as far to say that a person commits an offense just by offering to buy or sell a body part.

Some laws have been deemed unnecessary in the modern age. Up until a few decades ago, it was illegal to drink more than three sips of beer while standing in the town of Lefors.

It also used to be illegal to carry wire cutters in your pocket. This law was in place because cowboys would cut barbed wire fences of property owners so their cattle could pass through. Good thing they didn’t have electric fences back then!

Perhaps my favorite Texas law is the Safe Cupcake Amendment, created in 2005 when the Texas Department of Agriculture banned sweet treats in public schools.

Parents who delighted in the privilege of bringing cupcakes to their children’s schools for their birthday created uproar when then Texas Agricultural Commissioner Susan Combs banned junk food from schools. She began fining schools that failed to follow these strict health guidelines.

Lawmakers responded by creating the Safe Cupcake Amendment, allowing parents to bring the tasty treats to school. I remember eating cupcakes in school when I was younger. Once I lost my tooth while eating a cupcake out of an ice cream cone.

While researching this cupcake column, I discovered that this week is Child Nutrition Employee Appreciation Week. As Todd Staples, TDA commissioner, wrote on the proclamation declaring the appreciation week, “Child nutrition professionals are essential in the fight against childhood obesity.”

So thank the child nutrition professionals at your child or grandchild’s school for providing nutritious meals … and cupcakes.

In Texas anyone who wishes to hold a public office must acknowledge the existence of a Supreme Being. This is in Section 4 of the Bill of Rights of the Texas Constitution.

Article 6, Section 6 allows voters to be privileged from arrest if they are going to or returning from voting. Guess that means even criminals are allowed to vote.

In the city of Clarendon it is illegal to dust any public building with a feather duster.

Oh, and if you feel like selling your arm or some other part of your body for extra cash, don’t! That’s illegal too. This law even goes as far to say that a person commits an offense just by offering to buy or sell a body part.

Some laws have been deemed unnecessary in the modern age. Up until a few decades ago, it was illegal to drink more than three sips of beer while standing in the town of Lefors.

It also used to be illegal to carry wire cutters in your pocket. This law was in place because cowboys would cut barbed wire fences of property owners so their cattle could pass through. Good thing they didn’t have electric fences back then!

Perhaps my favorite Texas law is the Safe Cupcake Amendment, created in 2005 when the Texas Department of Agriculture banned sweet treats in public schools.

Parents who delighted in the privilege of bringing cupcakes to their children’s schools for their birthday created uproar when then Texas Agricultural Commissioner Susan Combs banned junk food from schools. She began fining schools that failed to follow these strict health guidelines.

Lawmakers responded by creating the Safe Cupcake Amendment, allowing parents to bring the tasty treats to school. I remember eating cupcakes in school when I was younger. Once I lost my tooth while eating a cupcake out of an ice cream cone.

While researching this cupcake column, I discovered that this week is Child Nutrition Employee Appreciation Week. As Todd Staples, TDA commissioner, wrote on the proclamation declaring the appreciation week, “Child nutrition professionals are essential in the fight against childhood obesity.”

So thank the child nutrition professionals at your child or grandchild’s school for providing nutritious meals … and cupcakes.

        

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