MovieChat Forums > Footloose (1984) Discussion > It's perfectly lawful to ban dancing

It's perfectly lawful to ban dancing


People who think some papers (called 'constitution' or whatever) give them rights or prevent the possibility of banning pretty much anything or create pretty much any kind of "must" or "you can't" type situation, obviously have no clue of what Law is.

Ever think of licenses? Do you really HAVE to have a "driver's license" to travel by automobile? Fact: No, you don't - with certain conditions. But the thing is:

HUMANS HAVE UNLIMITED RIGHT TO CONTRACT.

Think about that. They have a right to make a contract that bans them from dancing or forces them to have a 'license' to do something perfectly lawful.

For those who think 'legal system' is the same as 'law', are not informed of the truth.

(You can research it yourself, but I can recommend a couple of starting points - but beware, there's no turning back to carefree life after learning the truth about all this:

Starting point 1) http://yourstrawman.com
Starting point 2) Find "Meet your strawman" from youtube (a 5-minute grayscale clip that explains the very basics))

So, banning dancing is perfectly lawful. You can ban anything you want from yourself, or you can sign any contract you want, that bans you from doing something. If a community so decides, they can ban dancing. Children who live within the community, do not really have the right to decide about the community's affairs until they have reached the age of consent

(this is a difficult matter though, because the Law does not define such, only the 'legal system' does - so it's a bit of an oddity. It's clear that you can't give a gun to a child, because a child doesn't understand that death is 'permanent' - but an adult is able to make a decision whether to have a gun or not. But when does a child become an adult - the World has not even reached an agreement within the legal system, let alone in common sense).

However, they do own their own body, and as long as they are not doing any harm to others, they have the right to do anything they want with their body.

But if we talk about adults alone, anyone who signs an agreement or contract that says: "I consent to being governed by the community's rules about banning dancing" is then banned from dancing. It's perfectly lawful.

However, anyone who has -not- signed such a contract, cannot be banned from dancing lawfully, without their consent. But then again, the community has the right to evict or deport anyone who doesn't agree to their rules - provided, that the community people own the land and the buildings in the community area.

So yes, you can lawfully ban dancing, but you can't lawfully FORCE the ban on anyone who hasn't consented to being governed by it. A community where everyone signs such an agreement can decide to ban it, and then dancing will become unlawful for them, until they claim back their right to dance.

This is exactly like 'driver's license', 'paying taxes', 'paying a TV fee' (why should you pay a fee for something YOU own, to someone who has no right to what you own?) or 'gun permit'. You CAN agree to have the obligation to have/do those things, if you want. But you don't HAVE TO AGREE to have such an obligation.

If you have signed applications (to apply = to beg), submissions (think about what this means) or registrations (regis = king, anything you register, transfers the allodial title, i.e. "ownership" of said thing to the government), you have consented to being governed by a 'legal system' that can now enforce those things upon you. Because you have consented.

Your consent is imperative. Without your consent, pretty much nothing can be forced upon you lawfully, if you have not broken the Law!

Law is made to protect people, and it's simple. Basically it includes:

- Don't harm, injure or murder anyone (without their consent)
- Don't harm, damage, touch, use or steal anyone's property (without their consent)
- Be honest in all your dealings (don't do fraud)

That's it! That's law! Easy to obey, right? "Legal system" is something else. It has not been created to protect the human beings, like law. "Legal system" is manufactured so that human beings can be enslaved as "persons" (you are not a person, you have a person - a person is a corporation, a 'legal fiction', if you will).

I know this easy truth will be a hard pill to swallow, and most readers will probably react with predictable cognitive dissonanse, anger, aggression, ridicule, disbelief, laughter and so on. Go ahead, it's your choice - I am simply presenting the truth - it's up to you how to use this information, or whether to discard it or whatnot.

But the main point is: It's lawful to ban dancing - it only needs the consent of those who want to be banned from dancing.

(But it IS ridiculous, I will give you that much)

Remember that constitutions and amendments do not give you rights - they don't give you anything. They don't even list most of your rights - they simply list a select few, ALREADY EXISTING rights, that are unalienable - so they cannot be given, they cannot be taken away, they are yours by being born (and probably even before), and can never be removed.

Constitutions and amendments are meant to CONTROL GOVERNMENT so that it doesn't get too much power, so it won't enslave human beings. But people were too stupid to understand any of this, so they were enslaved WITH their consent.

Did you ever wonder why seemingly "your" name (it's not your name) is written on all official cards and most of the bank papers and other 'official' papers and notifications LAST NAME FIRST and in CAPITAL LETTERS?

It resembles your name, but it's not your name. John:Smith or John Smith would be your name, but SMITH, JOHN is not.

Here are some other ways to spell the name that is not yours, but the "person's":

- Mr. John Smith
- Dr. John Smith
- Mister John Smith
- Sir John Smith
- Smith, John
- J. Smith
- Smith J.
- Smith, J.
- SMITH, John
- SMITH JOHN
- SMITH, JOHN
- J. S.
- S. John

There are probably more - but if you see "your" name mutilated this way, or any other way, you can bet it's not YOU they are addressing, but the "person", that has plenty of obligations a HUMAN does not.


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So give us a reason that would actually justify banning it. Ban smoking, okay that's a no brainer, ban texting and driving, again obvious, ban screaming kids from quiet places, again, no brainer, ban guns from stores, a little more complicated, but there's a reason behind them all, so what reason could possibly exist to ban dancing?

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I don't think I'd ever personally consent to the idea, but their reasoning in the movie was relatively justifiable from an altered perspective. The crash that killed reverend Moore's son seemed a viable enough reason in a small church town where said reverend was a part of many peoples' lives. It's not unlike small church Towns to pass laws or bans like this following a tragic event like that of the movie, as most of them are governed by their religious views and close connections with those involved.

Does that make it inherently right? Mmno. But you can pretty well find any reason to justify a law. Case in point: pretty much any and all government issues going on RIGHT now.

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It wasn't justifiable, they didn't get killed because they were dancing, they died because they got drunk, but Prohibition didn't work either.

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It wasn't just dancing, though. It was any sort of reckless behavior. Drinking, speeding, listening to loud music. I guess you'd have to live in a town like that to really see their perspective. I'm not agreeing with it, I'm just saying that some small Towns, where religion is more esteemed than constitutional freedoms, this kind of thing isn't exactly a stretch.

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i wish someone would ban birkenstocks.



Where there's smoke, there's barbecue!

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THANK YOU. I hate how often people misinterpret the First Amendment.

This is a helpful website: http://www.uscourts.gov/educational-resources/get-involved/constitutio n-activities/first-amendment/free-speech.aspx

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I do not know much about American law, but Elmore City, Oklahoma, on which the film was based, banned public dancing for 100 years:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elmore_City,_Oklahoma#Footloose

I found another town in Oklahoma that once "banned alcohol, tobacco, gambling, dancing, movies, swearing, and working on Sundays."

http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/b/be026.html

I suspect such laws were common throughout much of the world until fairly recently.

I can't be bothered with a signature

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However, anyone who has -not- signed such a contract, cannot be banned from dancing lawfully, without their consent. But then again, the community has the right to evict or deport anyone who doesn't agree to their rules - provided, that the community people own the land and the buildings in the community area.


Any evidence that your caveats were true in this case? In most places, people's homes are not owned by the town.

--------
My top 250: http://www.flickchart.com/Charts.aspx?user=SlackerInc&perpage=250

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Late, but, I don't believe any town can evict or deport someone from the town (with the exception of an illegal resident.), at least in the US. If you are a citizen or a legal resident you have the right to live anywhere you like. Granted, you have to buy a property or rent one. But denying someone the right to purchase or rent is a very sticky wicket. And someone already in the town cannot be evicted from it.

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