People Break Down What Behavior The Average Person Thinks Is Illegal But Actually Isn't
Did you know that there are many people out there who believe that driving barefoot is illegal?
That's just a rumor, by the way, and it likely started because many states have a law saying you must be wearing unobstructing footwear that won’t get in the way of operating the pedals.
The more you know!
Also, can you imagine being arrested for going barefoot? Sounds ridiculous, doesn't it?
People shared more with us after Redditor MoneyBonus8979 asked the online community:
"What is something the average person thinks is illegal that actually isn’t?"
"Counting cards..."
"Counting cards at a casino black jack table."
wootpro
It's just a strategy, nothing illegal about that. If casinos catch you, they can bar you from coming back, but you cannot be arrested.
"Cops lying to you..."
"Cops lying to you. (U.S.) They don't have to tell you they're a cop. They can say literally anything to extract information."
[deleted]
Especially during interrogations. Anything to get you to incriminate yourself. Always request a lawyer and don't say anything else.
"Doesn't mean..."
"Giving cops the middle finger. It's protected under freedom of speech. Doesn't mean it's smart to do and they won't find some reason to make your day hell. But it's legal."
leapdayjose
Profanity is indeed generally protected per the First Amendment. Though yes, you might want to be mindful.
"Piracy if you download..."
"Piracy, if you download in most countries. It's illegal to distribute pirated material but not to download it, mostly because the laws are a decade or two behind."
"Here in Canada, for instance, a copyright owner can send a warning notification to the internet provider and they're legally obligated to pass it on, but they have no obligation to punish you for it. I don't think any major providers here ban people, it doesn't affect them and you're still paying them."
nickdude96
You wouldn't download a car, would you?
Sorry, couldn't resist.
"It's completely legal..."
"It’s completely legal for a woman to be topless in public in New York City, and I believe total nudity in public is legal in Washington or Oregon or possibly both."
Jon_Snuh
Meanwhile, I know in Seattle they have this spring time thing where a lot of people ride bicycles naked like a big naked parade of bike riders.
"In my state..."
"In my state, turning left on a red light when you’re on a one-way and turning onto another one-way. Nobody knows, nobody goes, and it drives me bonkers."
TrustYourTingle
You see, this is why I just wouldn't want to get behind the wheel anytime soon.
"Discussing wages..."
"Discussing wages with your fellow employees."
[deleted]
Not only is it legal, your right to do so is protected by the National Labor Relations Act of 1935. It’s actually illegal to tell your employees not to talk about wages with each other.
"Driving with..."
"Driving with the interior light on in the car."
megagirlyguapapol
If you're a dad driving, its both illegal and a death sentence.
"Tax avoidance."
"Tax avoidance. Perfectly legal. Tax evasion is a completely different story."
aceh40
Many people don't understand the difference, while at the same time engage in tax avoidance every year with their 401k plans, IRA investments, Healthcare Savings Accounts, Commuter Benefits, Flexible Spending Accounts, Mortgage interest deduction, etc.
"In Canada..."
"In Canada, women can be shirtless wherever men can though women still get arrested for this."
RevolutionaryRoad19
Most of the USA, too. As long as you’re just going about your business and not “attempting to arouse prurient interest” or words to that effect you’re legally–LEGALLY–fine.
Surprised by any of these? Feel liberated, maybe? They say you don't know what you don't know... and now you know. So get out there and let your freak flag fly (or not).
Have some observations of your own? Feel free to tell us more in the comments below!
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Many of us find scientific facts fascinating, and for good reason, but like all subjects, there are aspects of scientific study that are positively disturbing and can keep us up late at night.
When asked, Reddit of course had an endless supply of factoids to haunt their fellow Redditors.
Redditor The_D1ngb4t asked:
"What scientific fact scares the absolute s**t out of you?"
The Carrington Event
"I don’t remember what it was called, but there was an event in the 1800s caused by solar activity where telegraphs operated on their own without power and I think caused minor damage."
"Should such a solar event happen again, it would destroy all of our internet network capabilities and other electrical gear. Anyone know what I’m referring to?"
"Edited to Add: The Carrington Event."
- 123eyecansee
Atomic Bomb
"When the atom bomb was being created, the leading scientists associated with the project at the time had to calculate the flammability of the Earth's atmosphere in order to ensure that detonating the bomb would not cause the atmosphere to combust."
"At the time when the first atom bomb was detonated, these scientists still had not answered this question, meaning that we legitimately just crossed our fingers and hoped we wouldn't set the f**king planet on fire. Humans are stupid."
- Otherwise-Win7936
Outer Space
"Space just in general. Or that bit about the Higgs Field not being in true equilibrium and that returning to it would break everything as we know it."
- SEND_ME_UR_TINY
Sneaky Cancer
"The fact that your body can have advancing cancer and you wouldn’t know it sometimes. My father-in-law's brother was walking through his kitchen and he fainted and hit his head on the counter. He was rushed to the hospital and they ran tests."
"He had stage four pancreatic cancer and his body was already in the endgame. He was dead within two months of diagnosis. That shit terrifies me and it can happen to anyone."
- bigpapahugetim3
"Happened to my five-year-old daughter. For a week she had a nose bleed on and off that the doctors weren't concerned about since kids get nose bleeds for various reasons."
"Then she collapsed a week later and was gone three hours after getting to the hospital. She had leukemia. I have two other children and I'm terrified something could happen to them too."
- mamadrama91
Alzheimer's Disease
"Scientific literature’s conclusion on Alzheimer’s disease and other neurodegenerative diseases, in general, is that the diseases start decades before the first obvious symptoms and that we need to treat them at this stage."
"When you exhibit obvious symptoms, it’s too late, your brain is already mush."
"If you get diagnosed with Alzheimer’s at 65, you had the disease since your early 40s at least. And you experienced very mild symptoms but didn’t notice them. And your brain fought like hell to compensate for the deficit."
"When you get diagnosed, your brain is already very severely damaged and will never recover from the deficit."
- Alkuna
The Suddenness of It
"The fact that we can just get a blood clot and die and not realize anything was up. The human body has so many ways of just suddenly dying and it's terrifying."
- a-packet-of-noodles
A Distinct Possibility
"I'm not afraid of suddenly dying. I'm afraid of suddenly being severely disabled."
- phunkydroid
"My cousin was always riding horses. She was very lucky to have the access to them that she did. She was riding with a less experienced friend. The friend’s horse took off and she gave chase to try and save her friend."
"Whatever happened, she took a fall and was paralyzed when she was maybe 22 or 23 years old and lived in a facility for the next 12 years until she died a very early death."
"She couldn’t speak or communicate hardly. Just 12 years of hardship. She had to rediscover and grieve her father's death all over again, not to mention grieve her own life. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone."
- cranwitch
The Boogeyman of Medicine
"Prion diseases exist."
- hiboJBob
"From my understanding of CJD, or Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (it's the boogeyman of my career field), it's something you contract, but it takes about 10 years for any symptoms to appear, and either way it's impossible to do anything about. So eerie, honestly."
- s00perball
"Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease."
"It's genetic. You won't know that you have it. When you know that you have it, there is zero recourse. It will eat holes in your brain and you'll die."
"That, and Fatal Familial Insomnia, also genetic. One of your parents woke up one day and couldn't fall back asleep until they died, having suffered rapidly progressing neural degeneration."
"And it tends to set in around mid-life, so you spend every day waking up knowing it might be the last time. You find it hard to build relationships and have a family because you know it's not a matter of if, only when. But you know you're not gonna see your golden years."
- __garlic__
No Floating Here
"You can get non-buoyant water."
"In wastewater treatment plants, they aerate the water so the bacteria breaking down the poo has plenty of oxygen. Due to the introduced air, the water density is low enough that a human body (or most any object that would normally float) will go straight to the bottom."
- MustNotSay
Poor Yeller
"Rabies. You can have it and never know until it decides it's time. And then you'll die terribly."
- PMyourTastefulN**es
A Reality
"That one day I will die. I don't know why, but sometimes at night, as I'm falling asleep, I suddenly think of this and it freaks me out. Like, start feeling super anxious."
- nastybacon
"Just know that once you die, you could either stop existing, which isnt painful, or you could discover a whole different world."
- InfernoSlayer2
Why Can't We See or Touch It? ...Or Can We?
"The metaphysical aspect of consciousness."
"Where is consciousness? What is it? When does it really end? Where does it go when we die? When we sleep? How does it occupy our entire being without being physically present?"
"We are quite literally the universe experiencing itself, in a fragile little bubble on a mote of dust in a sunbeam."
"And yet, what exactly are we?"
"That’s the sort of question that keeps me up at night. I don’t fear death, I don’t fear world annihilation, but I am deeply unsettled by the mere experience of being aware."
- Bloorajah
How Terrible
"Methanol contains very little carbon, so when it burns, it's basically invisible."
"Can you imagine death by burning alive, and no one can see the flames, so they can't put them out?"
- boxofmarshmallows
C. Difficile Infection
"Every time you use an antibiotic, even for something mild like strep throat or bronchitis or traveler’s diarrhea, you technically could get C. Difficile infection from your wiped out gut flora. And that could end up a lingering, resistant infection, that leads to colectomy or fecal transplant."
"Antibiotics are scary. And there’s a reason doctors only want to prescribe them if absolutely needed."
- TheSunscreenLife
Infinite Darkness
"Less 'scary' and more 'mind-numbingly depressing' is the Dark Era of the universe."
"When all the star fuel is gone (and it will be) and all the white dwarves have gone cold and dark (and they will) and all the black holes have evaporated away into elementary particles (and they will), the universe will be a cold, dark place..."
"Forever."
- Imissyourgirlfriend2
As fascinating as science is, there are some truly dark, troubling corners that we can linger over for too long.
While it's good to be knowledgeable of these possibilities, we need to remember the lighter aspects of life, as well.
Any kind of romantic relationship takes work.
Once the honeymoon phase ends, both partners involved realize that if they're going to stay for the long haul, they must equally put in the effort.
However, not all relationships are built the same. Some have no hope in salvaging a relationship that is never meant to be.
So how do you avoid an eventual heartbreak after so much investment of time?
Redditor icyqueen999999 got some helpful hints after asking:
"What is a dead giveaway of a toxic relationship?"
Trust was severely lacking in these relationships.
Proof Of Fidelity
"My 57 year old colleague constantly has to send videos and pics of him working to his wife."
– LB89LB19
Speaking From Experience
"My ex always tried to make me do this. F'king obnoxious. Guess who was eventually found out to never be where he said he was and was sneaking around instead? Lol."
– AlpacaOurBags
Final Analysis
"It's not only that but if you make someone spend all their energy proving that they are faithful, they don't have the mental capacity to even consider their partner might be the unfaithful one."
– sturmeh
Submitting Detailed Records
"I found out the other week that my buddy has to send his girlfriend detailed notes with timestamps of legitimately everything he does while hanging out with the guys..."
"9:14 went down to the kitchen for a glass or water 9:15 stopped to pet the cats before heading upstairs 9:18 made it back upstairs and sat on the right side of the couch."
– rowdy_sprout
Both parties involved have to benefit from a relationship. These examples reflect ones that don't.
Path Of Least Resistance
"One partner always gets their way."
"For me, it was 'easier' to bend over backward than to deal with the whining and complaining if I stood my ground. Easier is in quotes because it was only easier in the short term - long term made life hell."
– The_Griffin_Scimitar
Mental And Physical Toll
"Fine, whatever you want, just like always, whatever you want."
"Whatever I want? It's never whatever I want. When I wanted to see Stomp, and you wanted to see Wicked, what did we see?"
"We saw Wicked."
"When I said that I wanted to have kids, and you said, you wanted me to have a vasectomy, what did I do? And then when you said that you might want to have kids and I wasn't so sure, Who had the vasectomy reversed? And then when you said you defintely didn't want to have kids, who had it reversed back? Snip snap! Snip snap! Snip snap! I did. You have no idea the physical toll, that three vasectomies have on a person. And I bought this condo to fill with children."
– VaiterZen
Failure In The Long Term
"Sadly, in these sorts of relationships, the person who cares the least has the most power. You could bend over backwards trying to please the other person, and it might keep them around in the short term, but it doesn't change the fact they don't really respect you. You know in your gut that if you ever actually stood your ground on any issue instead of giving in to them, things would end there and then."
– Innalibra
It appears the love has vacated the scene a long time ago.
Talking Smack
"If someone is always talking crap about their partner whenever they are not together."
"I've seen this far too many times, it's always ended in total disaster withing a few years at most."
– ricochetpeestream
Endless Complaining
"Ugh, yup. I've listened to so many people complain about their partners and I just wonder: WHY are y'all together!? If I get a chance to talk about my bf, you can bet I'll start dishing out everything I love about him."
– MelanisticCrow
Hostility
"Lack of trust and constant fights."
– Lost-Championship914
"I once read that contempt is the #1 sign of a relationship on its deathbed. When partners don’t respect each other, it sets the stage for every other bad thing."
– PartySquirrel1
Breaking up is hard to do, as the song goes.
But when a relationship has been on the rocks and has turned unbearable to the point of resenting one another, there's no point in staying with the toxic situation.
Acknowledging the red flags and willingly staying in a miserable situation is not healthy.
There is always something, or someone, better out there.
All of us have found ourselves forced to lie at some point in our lives.
In most cases, it's been just a little white lie that didn't lead to any serious repercussions and may have even spared the feelings of others.
Other people's lies, however, end up causing unexpected ripple effects, making an already bad situation even worse.
Of course, lying is something of a gift, as some people's lies are as clear to detect as the nose on their faces.
While some people are so good at lying, they manage to have everyone fooled for the rest of their lives.
Some of these lies are so spectacular, that they've even earned a place in the history books.
"What is the most successful lie in history?"
They Couldn't Detect It For Years
"Have you ever heard of a radar detector?"
"How about a radar detector detector, which the police use to see if you have a detector?"
"Ever wonder how they work?"
"I mean, a radar detector is a receiver, how could the police possibly know you have one?"
"Until recently, practically every radio used a concept called superheterodyne."
"Basically there’s a tiny radio transmitter in your receiver, that signal is mixed with the one from the antenna and the result is what your receiver tunes to."
"It's one of the most important inventions of the 20th century, and you most likely never heard of it."
"The problem is that sometimes the tiny transmitter is poorly shielded and some of it leaks back out the antenna."
"If you know what that 'intermediate frequency' is you can listen for it."
"The Escort radar detectors, which were super-popular in the 80's, leaked like a sieve.""Presto, radar detector detectors."
"Takeaway: if you know what you're looking for, you can actually detect someone else's radio receiver."
"The setup."
"In 1942 RAF planes began using VHF radar to look for German submarines leaving port in France at night."
"All of a sudden they were getting sunk en mass."
"The Germans were familiar with other British radars working around this frequency and were able to find the new radar's frequency around August."
"They built a receiver, Metox, which was tuned to this frequency."
"When a plane using this radar was anywhere in the area, Metox would play a sound into the radio operator's headphones."
"By October most of the fleet had it and the RAF pilots were returning with stories about how the uboats would always dive as soon as they turned toward them to attack."
"But the RAF had prepared for this moment, they knew it was only a matter of time before the Germans found the frequency."
"Earlier two grad students had come up with a new device called the magnetron that produced very strong radio signals from a device the size of a breadbox."
"And the signal was REALLY short, about 10 cm, whereas their older radars were 150."
"So Metox was completely incapable of 'hearing' it, it was tuned way too far from the frequency of the new signal."
"They rushed the new system into production and the first sets started arriving just in time for the uboat campaign to start up again in spring when the weather got better."
"By March it was clear to the Germans something was up."
"Their boats were getting sunk en mass again, and the ones that escaped attack said there was no warning on their detectors."
"They tried everything to detect the new signal, but they just couldn’t find it."
"This was because they were missing one extremely important bit of electronics, the crystal detector, and simply couldn’t hear the signals no matter how hard they tried."
"And now the lie."
"Knowing something was up, uboats were on high alert all the time."
"One got lucky and shot down its attacker, and captured the crew."
"During interrogation they asked why they could no longer detect the radar."
"The pilot told them they no longer used radar. Instead, he claimed, they had a receiver for Metox and under perfect conditions they could pick it up 90 miles away."
"They only turned on the radar at the last minute for range measurements so they knew when to drop the depth charges."
"By that time the U-boat was too busy exploding to notice."
"The Germans didn’t believe him, but it was technically possible, once can indeed make a receiver to detect your receiver."
"And Metox was known to be 'leaky', as it was deliberately built quick and cheap from a pre-war French radio set."
"So they built their own Metox receiver in the lab, and sure enough, they could detect it."
"So then they put it on a plane and detected one of their boats 60 miles away."
"Utter panic."
"Orders were sent out to all boats: turn off Metox."
"And so not only did the RAF get to keep using their fancy new magnetron radar without the Germans even trying to detect it, but then they turned off their perfectly good Metox detectors and all the RAF planes with the older radar suddenly started working again too!"
"And THAT is the greatest lie ever."
"By the end of June, the uboat fleet was on the bottom of the ocean."
"This was not due entirely to this trick, there were a number of things that all arrived at almost the same time that did it."
"It was the combination of the new radars, huff-duff, larger numbers of frigates dedicated to the taskand the lack of any detectors on the uboats that made even the old radars work again all arrived within two months."
"And that was that."
"The Germans finally figured it out some time around November. November!"
"Apparently the pilot made the whole thing up on his own."
"This little white lie helped open the Atlantic to the convoys of 1943 that led to the end of Italy’s involvement and ultimately dday."- maurymarkowitz
Point Pointing GIF by Sarah & DuckGiphyElizabeth Taylor Had Us All Fooled
"That diamonds are valuable."
"Made one family really really rich though lol."
"Gotta love how many people try to defend their artificially inflated value."
"Just shows how well the lie continues to work lol."- sfPanzer
All Talk, NO Truth
"Frank Abagnale Jr., the inspiration for 'Catch me If You Can', apparently wasn’t as big of a con man that the movie leads you to believe."
'He conned people into thinking he was a bigger con man than he actually was."- rickejohn
Surveillance, Or Just Profiling?
"'We are using mass surveillance to help catch terrorists'."- Salty_Cantaloupe4926
GiphyAll It Takes Is One Click
"'I acknowledge that I have read and agree to the above Terms and Conditions'."- SuvenPan
Maybe Not A Lie, But Pretty Misleading
"Iceland and Greenland."- Technical_Put_9173
...Might Have To Think About This One...
"I before E except after C."
"Unless your foreign neighbor Keith offers you eight counterfeit sleighs from feisty caffeinated weightlifters."
"Weird."- BigJDizzleMaNizzles
Nicksplat Nickelodeon GIF by Hey ArnoldGiphyIt's Easy To Believe Most Rumors...
"In the 90s kids spread the rumor that Marilyn Manson had a rib removed so he could suck his own d*ck."
"We spread this rumor across the entire country without the use of cell phones or the internet."- Solid_Science4514
They Really Weren't The Least Bit Suspicious?
"Trojan horse comes to mind."- riphitter
All ISN'T Fair In Politics...
"That lobbying isn't just bribery with extra steps."- fentown
Corruption Lobbying GIF by Transparency InternationalGiphyThere's No Way Of Knowing
"One that we'll never know was a lie."- Rare_Cause_1735
Oldest One In The Book...
"It's not you, its me"- read110
It's All In The Balance...
"That fat is harmful to your diet."
"That was just false information."
"And by trying to replace fats with sugar, obesity became an epidemic."- Mangobonbon
Some lies are easily spotted from miles away.
Others are so convincing, the world will never know they were duped.
Shocking as it may seem, there are still countless people all over the world who still don't follow the most basic rules of hygiene.
Up to and including covering your mouth when coughing, not double dipping amongst company, and washing your hands after using the bathroom (or just in general!)
However, those who scoff at people who don't follow certain hygiene protocols might want to think twice before scolding.
The truth is, all of us could do a little better when it comes to taking care of ourselves and others.
Particularly as we're still slowly emerging from a global pandemic.
"What are some hygiene tips you wish more people knew?"
Keep Those Supplies Clean
"Clean your hairbrushes, especially if you have oily hair/scalp."
"'Clean your glasses' includes the frames and nose pads."- PM_ME_BREAD_PICS_
Wash Your Waterbottle!
"PLEASE wash your reusable water bottle!"
"i know i know refilling your water bottle is super eco friendly but you gotta make sure you're washing it regularly to avoid any gross bacteria buildup."- linlindindin
As Do Your Sheets
"Pillows cases need to be washed often."
Design Pillows GIF by R Marine CrawleyGiphyOne Door To Always Leave Open...
"Maybe this is hygiene-adjacent but to stop that old laundry smell you have to leave your washing machine open to dry out."
"Every time!"- plantsplantsplaaants
It Can't Disguise Filth
"Perfume is not a substitute for washing and deoderant."- ReplicatedSun
Wiping Doesn't Always Suffice
"Washing your a**."- Professor_Lowbrow
"Washing your a** in the shower."
"Crack and hole my friends."
"Crack. And. Hole."- Watch-The-Time
season 1 friends GIFGiphyThink Of Every Place You Used It...
"Cleaning/ disinfecting your phone."
"It has so much bacteria and I hate when someone shows me to look at their phone and that shits crusty."- Permission_Beginning
Learn Something New Every Day
"I wish I had known that the natural Ph of vaginal secretions was acidic enough to stain clothing and such."
"It would’ve saved me a lot of anxiety of wondering what was wrong with me."
"Yes, it IS NORMAL for this to happen."- Ok-Consideration2676
Remember Every Crevice
"Wash behind your ears and inside deep of your belly button."- WarSlow5450
Adam Sandler Bath GIFGiphyNot Just For The Armpits
"Deodorant works on under boob and cleavage."- PresentationNice7043
Not The Aroma People Are Looking For
"If you can smell you, we all could smell you two days ago."- Lord_Cabbage_64
WHY DO PEOPLE NEED REMINDING?!?!?!
"Nobody realizes the amt of pee, blood and feces are on the stall latch."
"Wash your hands."- coreysgal
Wash Hands Nicksplat GIF by Hey ArnoldGiphyIt Doesn't KEEP Things clean...
"If you leave your washing in the machine for over a day, please wash it again before you dry it."
"There is few things worse than being stuck in a room with someone who smells like a sewer dog."- krumpettrumpet
The Deserve Extra Care
"Wash your feet, including the bottoms."
"I had a pedicure once where the nail technician remarked that he could tell I washed my feet well."
"I said, 'doesn’t everyone wash their feet?'"
"He said 'no' and that he can definitely tell when people don’t."
"I guess people assume the soap running down is sufficient, but it really isn’t."- theithe916
If there's anything worth putting in even the tiniest amount of extra effort for, it's hygiene and cleanliness.
And no, using hand sanitizer is NOT the same thing as washing your hands!!!