Blue laws, why do any of them exist?

[airdata]

I found myself at CVS yesterday getting some meds for my wife who recently delivered our child via Cesarean Section.. Rather than just get a card for mothers day like the dozen or so people in the store were doing... I thought a nice big bottle of wine would be a nice gift.

So, I gather some things including a bag, tissue paper, ribbon, and a 1.75ltr bottle of wine.

And then it happened " Sir, we can't sell this to you. It's not 12:00 This immediately made me ask her if she was serious. And then when she confirmed that she was serious, I let her know it was ridiculous.


I know that many of our laws have roots in basic religious principals of not raping your neighbor and just being a decent person.

There is absolutely no reason why I shouldn't be able to buy a bottle of wine as a gift at 10am on a sunday... why does it matter at all?

It's absolutely ridiculous that in 2011, there are still laws like this that were made for what may as well be referred to as prehistoric times of our history.

We should have a division of people who's sole purpose is to eradicate aged laws and regulations that have no place in today's society. Just because some people want to goto church on sunday should have absolutely no bearing on what other people want to do on their sunday


/rant

Lest I run out and get a 2nd floor hotel room to shoot a buffaloe from.

 

[Scotteq]

Well - You have to admit it could be worse

 

[Kadarin]

I agree with you completely. It flies in the face of supposedly living in a "free" country.

 

[QuantumPion]

Because we live in a country with a legal system that allows local communities to make laws to suit their own ideological preferences. Don't like it? Vote it down, or move somewhere else. That's the whole point of a free society.

 

[QuantumPion]

I agree with you completely. It flies in the face of supposedly living in a "free" country.

So it is the requirement of a society to be free that the preferences of one individual overrule the preferences of an entire local community? Or does that logic only apply when you ideologically agree with that preference?

 

[spidey07]

Sunday is the day of worship for God, not for you to be drinking.

Now once church is over (12:00 or 1:00), by all means load 'er up! But the real reason they are on the books is people vote and continue to vote to have it that way. That's a free society.

Case in point, my county you couldn't buy spirits on Sunday at all. Beer and wine were fine. We voted to sell spirits on Sunday and it passed about 10 years ago. Still no sales period until 1:00 Sunday, even in restaurants.

And it's not aged or unwanted law. Each year that stuff comes up on the local ballot and each year people vote to not change it. Same with dry counties, it always comes up to make it wet, and it's almost always defeated. Many people purposefully move to and highly desire a dry county.

 

[waggy]

i hate blue sunday's . i always need a good drink after church.

 

[OCGuy]

Because of religious nutbags.

They have the right to pass the laws, I have the right to point and laugh at those who choose to live there.

 

[nageov3t]

I'd imagine they continue to exist because of bureaucratic inertia and an attitude of "it's always been like this, so why change it?"

 

[spidey07]

I'd imagine they continue to exist because of bureaucratic inertia and an attitude of "it's always been like this, so why change it?"

I wouldn't say that's it at all. A surrounding county is dry and every year folks get it on the ballot to make it wet. It fails every year. The people in that county WANT it to be dry.

 

[MayorOfAmerica]

i hate blue sunday's . i always need a good drink after church.

You need to drink more Blood Of Christ then. Oh and what's church? Where I grew up about 15-20(?) years ago they started selling on Sundays within a 15 mile border of a neighboring state to keep people from driving over the border on Sunday, then they just got rid of the laws altogether.

I have since moved to a blue sunday state but thats never stopped me from preparing the day before. Blue laws are stupid in my opinion, but they are voted on from time to time so its what the people want.

 

[werepossum]

Sunday is the day of worship for God, not for you to be drinking.

Now once church is over (12:00 or 1:00), by all means load 'er up! But the real reason they are on the books is people vote and continue to vote to have it that way. That's a free society.

Case in point, my county you couldn't buy spirits on Sunday at all. Beer and wine were fine. We voted to sell spirits on Sunday and it passed about 10 years ago. Still no sales period until 1:00 Sunday, even in restaurants.

And it's not aged or unwanted law. Each year that stuff comes up on the local ballot and each year people vote to not change it. Same with dry counties, it always comes up to make it wet, and it's almost always defeated. Many people purposefully move to and highly desire a dry county.

This is to me analogous to gay marriage. Why should a majority of my neighbors have the ability to control when I may or may not purchase a legal product? Why should a majority be empowered to vote away some of my liberty because my behavior offends them?

The greatest irony here is that Sunday is NOT the Sabbath; that is Saturday, as is evidenced by a glance at any Julian or Gregorian calender. In their rush to keep the "Sabbath" holy by forcing what they see as moral behavior in others, these idiots are actually voting to keep the first holy and let the devil take the Sabbath. Not to mention, in our area one may buy beer but not wine or liquor. Seriously, WTF? Did I miss Jesus saying "Drink of this wine, for we are out of beer"?

Personally I blame NASCAR . . .

 

[Drako]

They seem to make more sense than the "No Happy Meal" laws which seem to be seeping into our society.

 

[Jaskalas]

Does the store have no right to limit the sell of certain items?

 

[Atomic Playboy]

It's pretty foolish legislation, to be sure. The justification being "Sunday is God's day" doesn't really make sense either. Are you telling me that it is impossible for Christians who want to observe the sabbath to refrain from entering a liquor store if they were open? In Judaism, Saturday is God's day, but you don't see a bunch of Orthodox Jews buying spirits just because the liquor store is open. Whatever happened to personal responsibility? I know some fat people who have a hard time avoiding fast food, but I don't think they'd advocate closing up Burger King on certain days because of their own problems with self-control.

Bottom line, if you don't believe in buying wine or spirits on a Sunday, then don't do it. But don't let your own religious ideology impact others who don't share your viewpoint. That's just basic human decency.

 

[Cerpin Taxt]

It's pretty foolish legislation, to be sure. The justification being "Sunday is God's day" doesn't really make sense either. Are you telling me that it is impossible for Christians who want to observe the sabbath to refrain from entering a liquor store if they were open? In Judaism, Saturday is God's day, but you don't see a bunch of Orthodox Jews buying spirits just because the liquor store is open. Whatever happened to personal responsibility? I know some fat people who have a hard time avoiding fast food, but I don't think they'd advocate closing up Burger King on certain days because of their own problems with self-control.

Bottom line, if you don't believe in buying wine or spirits on a Sunday, then don't do it. But don't let your own religious ideology impact others who don't share your viewpoint. That's just basic human decency.

If history has shown us anything, it's that religious conservatism and basic human decency are antithetical.

 

[Arglebargle]

I wouldn't say that's it at all. A surrounding county is dry and every year folks get it on the ballot to make it wet. It fails every year. The people in that county WANT it to be dry.

In Texas (and probably most everywhere), when you have a dry to wet election, you get this really strange alliance formed. Hardshell Babtists and their ilk join forces with all the liquor store owners strategically situated on the major roads leading into the dry county, to help defeat the ballot issue.

My favorite was old Brazoria County, where the then county sherrif had his fingers in a number of those type of liquor stores. If you bought from the 'right' one you drove back home, no problem. If you bought from one of the competing stores, you were much more likely to be stopped on the way back. Funny that.

 

[Kadarin]

Sunday is the day of worship for God, not for you to be drinking.

Now once church is over (12:00 or 1:00), by all means load 'er up! But the real reason they are on the books is people vote and continue to vote to have it that way. That's a free society.

Case in point, my county you couldn't buy spirits on Sunday at all. Beer and wine were fine. We voted to sell spirits on Sunday and it passed about 10 years ago. Still no sales period until 1:00 Sunday, even in restaurants.

And it's not aged or unwanted law. Each year that stuff comes up on the local ballot and each year people vote to not change it. Same with dry counties, it always comes up to make it wet, and it's almost always defeated. Many people purposefully move to and highly desire a dry county.

It's a tyranny of the majority. I am not a Christian and nor do I worship God, so why should my rights be trampled by those who do?

 

[jackschmittusa]

Used to that stores couldn't open before noon. Churches didn't want any competing activity available during church time. It might lure the marginal Christians away from the collection plate.

 

[Texashiker]

Location: Dallas Texas

You must be new to the bible belt?

 

[Cerpin Taxt]

Sunday is the day of worship for God, not for you to be drinking.

My religion says that Sunday is the day for you to be running around blindfolded in freeway traffic, so get to it, jerkoff.

 

[nageov3t]

Does the store have no right to limit the sell of certain items?

pretty much.

the county next to mine has really strict blue laws... basically nothing but food can be sold on Sunday.

in mixed stores (like a Sam's Club or something) all the non-food items will have barricades and the store can be fined for violations.

it's a little ridic; I have no clue how the law is still on the books, especially since the county is one of the biggest shopping corridors in the country.

 

[Kadarin]

You must be new to the bible belt?

TBFH, "The Bible Belt" is an abomination that this country would be better off without.

 

[BoberFett]

Even in big blue MN, the only state to vote for Mondale, you can't buy booze on Sunday.

Of course you can go to a bar and get completely blitzed then drive home drunk. But you sure as hell aren't going to be buying booze at the liquor store, heathen!

 

[BoberFett]

TBFH, "The Bible Belt" is an abomination that this country would be better off without.

Oh, so you're saying that non-bible belt states have legalized all drugs, alcohol can be sold 24/7 and prostitution is legal?

Don't get so high and mighty, you're just slightly less fucked up than the bible belt.