http://austin.bizjournals.com/austin/stories/2005/11/21/daily2.html

http://austin.bizjournals.com/austin/stories/2005/11/21/daily2.html

That's Mass 4ya!  A mere 25 years ago, blue laws were in effect every single Sunday.  Then around 1982, stores could open on Sunday only from noon to 6:00 pm.  My ex from Austin sure missed it.  We'd be hungry or bored at midnight, and Jillian would say, "You know, if we were in Austin we could go do this that the other thing!"  Grrrrr!
::)

I did see that sign in Whole Foods the other day, "Per Order of State Law We Will be Closed on Thanksgiving Day."

I didn't even know the Blue Law was still existant

I didn't even know the Blue Law was still existant


Almost every state, somewhere, even if it's just one county, has some form of blue laws.  The most restrictive are in some New Jersey county, I remember reading about it, nearly every thing is banned on Sunday.  And get this.  The people in that county like the blue laws a lot, because they keep voting them back in via referendum.

Here in Georgia, I know there is a county that has/had blue laws.  I remember them when I first moved to this state.  It was either Henry or Paulding county, they allowed no alcohol sales on Sunday.

I didn't even know the Blue Law was still existant

In Massachusetts, we've got some Blue Hills, some blue laws, some blue-noses, and some blue b*lls!
http://www.clicksmilies.com/s0105/huepfen/jumping-smiley-012.gif


Almost every state, somewhere, even if it's just one county, has some form of blue laws.  The most restrictive are in some New Jersey county, I remember reading about it, nearly every thing is banned on Sunday.  And get this.  The people in that county like the blue laws a lot, because they keep voting them back in via referendum.

Here in Georgia, I know there is a county that has/had blue laws.  I remember them when I first moved to this state.  It was either Henry or Paulding county, they allowed no alcohol sales on Sunday.

There are dry towns and dry counties here and there throughout the country, usually this only applies to selling alcohol on Sundays.  There are also some towns and counties that are dry seven days a week.  Can't name them off the top of my head.  It's not that big a deal.  You can usually drive across the county line and load up.  You can possess, transport, and consume alcohol in dry areas, but you can't sell it.  There are probably some locales with greater restrictions, though.

The law pertaining to Thanksgiving had been ignored, or overlooked, but the people at Shaws Market
made it an issue so they state had to enforce it.  They will probably change it now that it has become
an issue.

I can't say I've ever seen the harm in having stores closed on three days out of the year.  Everyone is in the same boat, so it's not like they're going to lose business to some other store.  The only possible exception being stores near the borders of the state and ost of those stores are already at a disadvantage due to the lack of sales tax in New Hampshire anyways.  If you've lived in the state for more than a month, you've probably figured it out by now anyways, so most people plan ahead.

The laws make some sense as well.  If everything is open, then emergency services have to be staffed at normal levels.  With fewer businesses open, you need fewer police available for calls due to the drop in traffic, shoplifters, etc. 

There's a reason why the Novemeber/December holidays have the most travel.  Everyone gets those days off.  Remove that last barrier, and the airlines aren't going to be very happy when they see a dip in their revenue.

I remember when I lived in Texas, you couldn't buy alcohol until 12 noon on Sundays. I also know there are a lot of dry counties-especially in Texas.




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