Ancient law requires a bale of straw to hang from Charing Cross rail bridge
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Re: Ancient law requires a bale of straw to hang from Charing Cross rail bridge
#2The article states that the purpose of this is "lost to time". I can image that by now its function is equivalent to a "brown M&M clause".
Re: Ancient law requires a bale of straw to hang from Charing Cross rail bridge
#3The article states that the purpose of this is "lost to time". I can image that by now its function is equivalent to a "brown M&M clause".
I'm a bit bemused at that "lost to time", as immediately before that it says:
The law requires a bale of straw to be hung from a bridge as a warning to mariners whenever the height between the river and the bridge’s arches is reduced, as it is at Charing Cross at the moment.
That seems clear enough! OK, the reason why it specifically has to be a bale of straw isn't obvious, but apart from that it seems very reasonable, just outdated.
Edit to add: straw does make sense as a makeshift crash barrier -- you'll notice if you hit it, but hopefully won't actually damage your ship. It seems like you would always just plough through and hit the actual bridge, though.
Re: Ancient law requires a bale of straw to hang from Charing Cross rail bridge
#4The article states that the purpose of this is "lost to time". I can image that by now its function is equivalent to a "brown M&M clause".
In case anyone else forgot what that means.
> The "brown M&M clause" was a specific contract requirement by Van Halen that demanded all brown M&Ms be removed from a bowl of M&Ms provided backstage before their performances. This clause was not a frivolous demand but a way to test if the concert promoters had read the entire contract carefully. If brown M&Ms were found, it indicated that other important technical details might have been overlooked, which could pose safety risks for the band and the audience.
Re: Ancient law requires a bale of straw to hang from Charing Cross rail bridge
#5The article states that the purpose of this is "lost to time". I can image that by now its function is equivalent to a "brown M&M clause".
I'm a bit bemused at that "lost to time", as immediately before that it says: The law requires a bale of straw to be hung from a bridge as a warning to mariners whenever the height between the river and the bridge’s arches is reduced, as it is at Charing Cross at the moment. That seems clear enough! OK, the reason why it specifically has to be a bale of straw isn't obvious, but apart from that it seems very reasonabl…
Yeah it's amazing (in a bad sense) how those bridge too low warnings are ignored most of the time
Well of course when you get stuck then it's too late.
Re: Ancient law requires a bale of straw to hang from Charing Cross rail bridge
#6I should patent my tennis ball-on-string solution for the same thing.
Re: Ancient law requires a bale of straw to hang from Charing Cross rail bridge
#7[flagged]
Re: Ancient law requires a bale of straw to hang from Charing Cross rail bridge
#8The article states that the purpose of this is "lost to time". I can image that by now its function is equivalent to a "brown M&M clause".
In case anyone else forgot what that means. > The "brown M&M clause" was a specific contract requirement by Van Halen that demanded all brown M&Ms be removed from a bowl of M&Ms provided backstage before their performances. This clause was not a frivolous demand but a way to test if the concert promoters had read the entire contract carefully. If brown M&Ms were found, it indicated that other important technical deta…
And an additional note: The Van Halen show wasn't a few dudes with guitars and a set of drums going around in a van.
It was a massive display of pyrotechnics and staging - the requirements in the rider weren't there for fun, it was for actual safety.
Re: Ancient law requires a bale of straw to hang from Charing Cross rail bridge
#9[flagged]
[flagged]
Re: Ancient law requires a bale of straw to hang from Charing Cross rail bridge
#10This is why laws should have sunset clauses