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自由社会最重要的制度之一是rule of law。Oxford Dictionary对rule of law的解释是：The restriction of the arbitrary exercise of power by subordinating it to well-defined and established laws.（以清晰和确立的法律，约束肆意的行使权力，这就是法治。）
Rule of law是香港法制的重要原则，亦受《基本法》保障。Rule of law的实质意义，Department of Justice（律政司）有这样的阐述：
At the heart of Hong Kong’s system of government lies the principle that no one, including the Chief Executive, can do an act which would otherwise constitute a legal wrong or affect a person’s liberty unless he can point to a legal justification for that action.
（香港政府系统内贯彻着一个原则，就是任何人（包括行政长官）除非有法律根据，否则不可作出构成法律过失或影响他人人身自由的行为。）
用叉食炸鸡犯法
法律面前人人平等，人人受法律同样的保障，要rule of law有效运作，大家自然都要尊重法律，不过有些法律，真的很难值得尊重。皆因真是十分古怪。这不是说一些与西方文化差异很大的地区，即使先进发达的美国，奇怪、难明、荒谬或无聊的法律每个州都有。Reader’s Digest一篇文章”Here are 50 of the dumbest laws in every state”就罗列了不少。Dumb解不能言语的，也解愚蠢的。Dumbest就解最愚蠢的，那就看看有多dumb。
For chicken chompers（大声咀嚼的人）in Gainesville, Georgia, “finger-lickin’” is not a suggestion – it is mandatory（强制的）. Thanks to a 1961 law added to the city code as a publicity stunt（宣传噱头）, it is illegal to eat fried chicken in “the poultry capital of the world” with anything other than your fingers. A tourist was “arrested” for such a chicken-forking violation in 2009.
在乔治亚州的Gainesville市法律规定食炸鸡一定要用手，用刀叉会被捕。这条1961年通过的法例旨在宣传这个市的炸鸡，但2009年真有游客犯例被拘捕，不过大概也是宣传手法。
加州Chico市则有这条法例：
It is illegal to build, maintain, or use a nuclear weapon within Chico, California city limits. A law that began in the ‘80s as a serious anti-nuke（反核的）statement has taken on a second life as an Internet joke, mainly due to the purported（据称的）consequences: In addition to self-annihilation（自毁）, the infraction also carries a $500 fine.
明文规定市内制造或使用核子弹是违法行为，违者可被罚款五百美元。
后袋禁放雪糕筒
摄影师Olivia Locher在I Fought the Law书中亦搜罗了美国各州的古怪法律，并以影像陈述。有些法律今时今日看似荒谬，但在当年确有其作用，例如在裤的后袋放雪糕筒是犯法。Olivia Locher解释：
The legend（传说）suggests that it became common practice for horse thieves to lure（饵诱）horses away with ice cream cones. The horse, unable to resist the sweetness, would follow the thief, resulting in a situation where the burglar（窃匪）could announce, “I didn’t steal him, he followed me!”
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(文/子慧)
