Idiocy Improved (cont)
So I looked a little deeper into the Illinois thing. First off, here is the link to the actual ammendment information. Bill Status of HB0049
Here are some interesting quotes from the affected sections:
Adopted children shall have the same status as children of the participant or annuitant, but only if the proceedings for adoption are commenced at least one year prior to the date of the participant’s or annuitant’s death.
An adopted child is eligible for the pension provided under paragraph (a) if the child was adopted before the firefighter attained age 50.
A child to be eligible must have been born or legally adopted before the policeman has withdrawn from service. In the case of an adopted child, the policeman shall be married and living with his wife at the time of the adoption, and the proceedings for adoption must have been initiated at least 6 months prior to the policeman’s death. The requirement that the proceedings for adoption be initiated at least 6 months prior to the policeman’s death does not apply where death occurs as a result of an act of duty.
Child or children. “Child” or “children”: The natural child or children, or any child or children legally adopted by an employee at least one year prior to the date any benefit for the child or children accrues.
My personal favorite:
When any contributor to said fund, who has been in the service of the house of correction for a period of 20 years, has contributed to said fund for the same period and has retired and become a beneficiary under “The 1911 Act” or this Division, shall then marry, such wife of such marriage shall after his death receive no benefit nor annuity from said fund.
Any widow or child or children receiving benefits or annuities, under “The 1911 Act”, shall continue to receive such benefits or annuities, which shall be increased from $480 per year to not more than $720 per year and paid in accordance with the provisions of Section 19–110 of this Division.
The term “child” or “children” under this Division shall not include adopted child or children, nor shall it include a stepchild or stepchildren of any contributor to aforesaid pension fund.
Again though, at least they are fixing it but it makes you wonder what else is on the books in our United States.
September 2nd, 2007 at 5:14 pm
yup. and yup. again, i follow Illinois alot since my daughter was surrendered there.
ha. i live in CT. We have these old blue laws that would seriously make you shudder.
September 3rd, 2007 at 12:06 am
There were some awful laws north of the border too.
In Ontario, an unwed mother could be thrown into JAIL - just for being pregnant.
They did that right until 1976!!
They have recently torn down one of the worst jails for these girls which had the nickname of the “Screaming House”. In the 1970’s, male guards were hired to look after them (a stupid PC move) - no surprise as to what happened to the girls.
I am pleased to say that the Ontario government issued a FORMAL apology, paid compensation and convicted a number of those guards for abuse, etc.
By the way, NONE of those women “give up” their children - their babies were simply taken.
One staggering fact is that if the girl was 21 or under, the parents of that girl could simply go to a judge and tell them to lock up their daughter for “immoral behaviour” (anything from kissing a boy to being pregnant out of wedlock). The judge would oblige and lock up the girl without a trial or even evidence. The sentence was indeterminate. Again, that law was on the books and ENFORCED until 1976 - only 31 years ago.
September 3rd, 2007 at 12:33 am
You got me thinking about other stupid laws - here is a web site full of them!
The scary part is that they are STILL enforcable!!
Here is a sample of them - enjoy or cringe!
North Dakota:
1. Beer & pretzels can’t be served at the same time in any bar or restaurant.
Nebraska:
1. A parent can be arrested if his child cannot hold back a burp during a church service.
Ohio:
1. Women are prohibited from wearing patent leather shoes in public.
Massachusetts:
1. Mourners at a wake may not eat more than three sandwiches.
Indiana:
1. Bathing is prohibited during the winter.
(From Cathy - they must smell pretty bad by the end of the winter- pheww!!!)
Florida is particularly strange;
Florida:
1. Women may be fined for falling asleep under a hair dryer, as can the salon owner.
2. A special law prohibits unmarried women from parachuting on Sunday or she shall risk arrest, fine, and/or jailing.
3. If an elephant is left tied to a parking meter, the parking fee has to be paid just as it would for a vehicle.
To see more of these bizarre laws on the books, check out this site.
http://www.eldar.org/~ben/funny/html/180.html
September 3rd, 2007 at 1:34 am
If you google “Stupid laws in US”, it is amazing what is still on the books.
Here are some US examples I found which are STILL law!
In Minnesota, it is against the law to hang male and female underwear together on the same washing line.
In Florida, it is illegal for unmarried women to parachute on a Sunday
(why only unmarried women?)
In Nebraska, a parent can be arrested if their child burps during a church service.
In Ohio, women are not allowed to wear patent leather shoes.
In North Dakota, it is illegal to serve beer and pretzels together.
Don’t feel too bad though - there are stupid laws everywhere.
Non-Christians have been banned from being within 20 metres of the churches in Rovato, Italy. This has really annoyed the police force. Why? A major highway passes within 15 metres of one of the churches! The police say that it is not practical to stop every single motorist to ask for their baptismal certificate!
The world has gone mad!
September 6th, 2007 at 2:43 am
Sorry if I repeated myself a little bit - I wasn’t sure that that message had been accepted.
September 6th, 2007 at 8:26 am
No problem, one of your comments got stopped by my spam filter, so I released it. I’m not sure why it was caught though.