h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

The motorbike Henry Winkler rode in Happy Days is the same one Steve McQueen rode in The Great Escape.

Maybe this is because in the Fonz's flat (above the garage), there was a film poster of Steve McQueen on that bike

In Florida, it is illegal to play chess underwater.
Proudwart

Whatever for?

Speaking of which, Whale Hunting is illegal in Utah.

Plans to build a blizzard safety hut for climbers near the peak of Ben Nevis had to be abandoned because it could not be made wheelchair-accessible, as required by law.

A specialty erotic caberet in Florida was sued under the Americans With Disabilities Act as their featured "shower booths" were not wheelchair accessible for their entertainers.

"Political Correctness" has gone too far.

I agree.

This is the same act that requires bathroom and elevator signs to be in braille... If you're blind, how do you find the signs?


(And if anyone's wondering, the reason drive-thru ATMs are in Braille is because it's easier to just make one style for both styles, drive-thru and walk-up.)

elevator panels and signs are not usually on the ceilings or anyplace else out of the ordinary. plus they often make sounds.

additionally you are assuming all blind people are totally blind. many legally blind people can see 'largish' things but are unable to make out small lettering. it harms you nothing for facilities to be manufactured to accomodate the disabled.

re the mountain shelter..frankly i don't believe it. a unisex toilet suitable for the handicapped would likely cost less than 2 single sex toilets, and even if it stood in substitution for a unisex toilet the additional cost would run to a few hundred dollars. we are only talking about a hand rail, wider door and an absence of a step. same deal with the shelter itself.

i am a great believer that any question that starts 'why don't they...' usually has an answer to do with not wanting to spend money. using the disabled as an excuse not to provide a facility at all is pretty cheap imho.

and yes, disabled people can and do climb mountains. that they should then require assistance to use facilities once they do is a matter of respect, privacy and dignity or lack thereof.

and yes a person who climbs a mountain can probably negotiate a poorly constructed building or toilet. just as an able bodied person can probably enter a public toilet with their eyes closed and use their hands to locate the porcelain. not something i'd want to do nor something i would expect anyone else to have to do.

not that ben nevis is a mountain in the sense most people understand. you can pretty much walk up it.

Regarding the mountain shelter, AFAIK the law doesn't state that it *has to be* wheelchair accessible. The service provider, whoever that is, just has to take "reasonable steps" to ensure that the hut is accessible to all. The Disablility Discrimination Act (2005) doesn't specify what is 'reasonable', and the Code of Practise relating to the Act says it depends on the service provided, the nature of the service provider and the resources available, and how a person's disability affects them in that context. There are various other factors taken into account when determining what steps should be taken, including how practicable it is to take the steps.

It could be argued that if somebody in a wheelchair was able to get to the top of the mountain, getting into a blizzard hut should be no problem.

Very good points... but you still have to wonder about that shower thing.

I met a woman online who was having major problems with a horse riding establishment she ran in the US... She offered treks. A group of very obese people (in excess of 20 stone) who were arranging holidays and activities were threatening to sue her because she wouldnt allow them to ride.
Her explanations that a horse is an animal not a machine, that you cant just brace them up to take extra weight or anything like that fell on completely deaf ears. She ended up recieving solicitors letters accusing her of unfair discrimination and threatening legal action. Of course, in the end it had to go to court, but after months and months of phone calls, threats of legal action etc which are stressful at the very least and expensive in time and money... I dont know the outcome, we lost touch as she was so busy. But it bugs me that people stop seeing sense becase they feel they have right on their side.

Oh, my useless fact to cover my mini rant: A heavy, static balanced load can be far less stressful to a horse over varied terrain than a light unbalanced rider.

Sorry... No good... that sounds far too useful... try again.

Er, sorry.

24/20 people I work with ate the cream cakes I bought yesterday. That measn four were left that I could have taken home and given myself a heart attack with last night if I'd known!!!!

24/20? Twenty four out of twenty people? Hmmm..

Useless fact - I'd have eaten the s

Twenty-four out of twenty? Is it some sort of zen?

Perhaps some of them have multiple personalities?

Lots of protoctists live in the sea. Lots of proctologists live on the land.

Here's some really useless info... Character (not actor) bios of the Castaway's on Gilligan's Island.


First Mate Willy Gilligan - Born in Pennsylvania. Worked in a gas station and was president of his 8th grade camera club.

Skipper Jonas Grumby - Was a Captain in the US Navy serving in the South Pacific during WWII and led the band aboard ship. He met Gilligan in the navy when Gilligan saved his life by pushing him out of the way of a loose depth charge. He bought the S.S. Minnow with his Naval Commision. He played on his high school football team.

Thurston Howell III - Met his wife at Harvard and married her in 1944 (the day Consolidated General jumped 17 points). He was convicted 6 times for antitrust violations and investigated every year for tax evasion.

Mrs. Lovey Howell - At Harvard she was a nurse's aid and Queen of the Pitted Prune Bowl Parade. Her diamond broach has been in her family since it was given to Columbus by Queen Isabella.

Movie Star, Ginger Grant - Was cast to play Cleopatra in "Pyramid for Two" before being shipwrecked. She once played a nurse in an episode of "Ben Casey" and guest starred on "Dr. Kildare". Her film credits include: Housewives From Mars, The Rain Dance of Rango-Rango, Attack of the 50-foot Anteater, Dracula's Women and Belly Dancers From Bali-Bali.

Professor Roy Hinkley, PHD (from Texas Christian University) - Other degrees include B.A.(from USC), B.S. (from UCLA), M.A. (From SMU). He was the youngest Eagle Scout in his home city.

Mary Ann Summers - Clerk at the Winfield General Store, Winfield, Kansas. She was a member of the 4H Club.

(http://www.gilligansisle.com)