Monday, September 1, 2014

Word of the Month for September 2014: Curfew

late is late is lateOn August 25, I saw my beautiful 5-year old daughter off to school.  She enters kindergarten this year in the Spanish/English immersion program.  So proud of her, I am.  If she only uses half of the words she learned from Dora the Explorer, she'll nail the Spanish language in no time at all.  Smart as she is, she is already exhibiting signs of rebellion.  Mom has to count to three to get her in the room, dad has to threaten to tickle if she doesn't eat her vegetables (not much of a threat since she loves to be tickled) and then there's the wanting to stay out all hours of the night (loves those late-night bike rides).  Yeah, I see trouble down the road.

Of course, this all leads up to the word for this month: CURFEW.  According to Black's Law Dictionary, CURFEW is a regulation that forbids people (of certain classes of them, such as minors) from being outdoors or in vehicles during specified hours.  How does this work?  Say you don't want your kid out after midnight (or home by 9:00 on a school night).  Parent might say, your "curfew" is 9:00PM and I want you inside the house by 9:00PM else (horrors) no more cell phone for you, young lady.

Another example?  Not long ago, there was the incident in Ferguson, Missouri where there has been looting and rioting by people who (I'm betting) don't have to go to work in the morning.  As a result of all the mayhem, the Missouri Govenor issued an order instituting a curfew to help curb some of the looting and rioting.

A number of cities around the country have curfew laws such as San Francisco, Indianapolis, Columbus (Ohio), Fort Worth (Texas), Seattle, and Washington D.C. just to name a few.  If you want (or need) to know about the curfew laws in your state or jurisdiction, why no head on over to your local county law library and take a look at what they have to offer.
Indianapolis

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