From the District of Columbia Department of Redundancy Department

It’s struck me for some time as, well, puzzling that the District of Columbia government requires taxi drivers to post notices in their cabs informing passengers that,

District of Columbia law requires mandatory use of Seat belts. There is a fifty dollar ($50) penalty for noncompliance. D.C. Law 11-244 (04-09-97)

Would I be fined $50 if I were wearing a seat belt, but if I were not wearing it because I had been forced to wear it? What on Earth does it mean to make the mandatory use of seat belts required? Government can mandate acts, but how can it require that they be mandated?

Posted by Tom Palmer at May 26, 2007 1:58 AM | TrackBack