# Nudity **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 15, 2000, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359 "2000-02-15T02:58:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Guy\_Incognito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guy_incognito/32/3920_2.png) [@Guy\_Incognito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guy_Incognito)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2000, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/21 "2000-02-15T20:51:00Z")
I’m not sure public nudity would be such a great thing. It’s bad enough trying to find a seats in fast food places that don’t have food or drink spilled on them, you’d also have to find seats without skid marks on them. EEEeeeeuuuuuuhhh!!! * * * “It’s only common sense, There are no accidents 'round here.” ---
**Author:** ![Stephen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/96bed5/32.png) [@Stephen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephen)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2000, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/22 "2000-02-15T23:15:00Z")
I think the key phrase that most proponents would stress at this point is “Where you would normally go barefoot.” It just seems so silly to get dressed to go to the beach. * * * Stephen [Stephen’s Website](http://stephen.fathom.org) Satellite Hunting 2.0.1 (Y2K compliant!) visible satellite pass prediction shareware available for download at [Satellite Hunting](http://stephen.fathom.org/sathunt.html) ---
**Author:** ![Billdo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/billdo/32/315_2.png) [@Billdo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Billdo)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2000, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/23 "2000-02-15T23:19:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally posted by Prose: > **It’s already legal in some places of Ontario for women to go topless during summer months in public.** It’s also legal for women to go topless in public in New York State. New York’s highest court ruled that laws prohibiting women from exposing their chests in public but not men were improper sexual discrimination and invalid. There are a few exceptions, though. Communities can prohibit both men and women from going shirtless. The Village of Southampton on Long Island, a high-end vacation community does this, and actively enforces its ban on walking around without a shirt against the people (mostly guys) who try to walk around the village topless. Also, going topless cannot be done for lewd or commercial purposes. This means that a woman can sunbathe topless in the park, but she cannot dance topless at a bar for guys to give her dollar bills. It’s wierd, but that’s the way the law works. Based on careful field research, I’ve found that, unfortunately, very few women do go topless in public. Oh well. ---
**Author:** ![NanoByte](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecc23a/32.png) [@NanoByte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NanoByte)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2000, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/24 "2000-02-16T00:14:00Z")
Well, that’s the way to liberate women, OK: Make men wear shirts! And you people don’t figure restaurants could provide holeless seat covers along with their napkins? mangeorge: I already \*un\*\*covered the present [status of nudity in Berkeley](http://www.straightdope.com/ubb/Forum3/HTML/002597.html). Ray (I don’t think you’re watching my webcam anyhow, so I’m running off to store. . .in my sandals.) ---
**Author:** ![tbea925](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dc4da7/32.png) [@tbea925](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tbea925)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2000, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/25 "2000-02-16T01:00:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally posted by hansel: > \*\*Upon rereading my post, please believe that I’m making no comparison between the > vulnerable bits of large breasted women, and my own vulnerable bits. > \*\* ## Great! Who has a link with images? This sig not Y2K compliant. Happy 1900. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2000, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/26 "2000-02-16T01:21:00Z")
In California, you can go topless if you are feeding a baby. ---
**Author:** ![ignatiusjreilly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/2acd7d/32.png) [@ignatiusjreilly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ignatiusjreilly)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2000, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/27 "2000-02-16T01:27:00Z")
And is there a minimum age for said “baby”? ---
**Author:** ![Stephen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/96bed5/32.png) [@Stephen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephen)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2000, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/28 "2000-02-16T03:27:00Z")
Recent nudity ordinances around Central Florida make it legal to mow your lawn nude, while forcing strip clubs to resort to putting on ‘theatre’ and allowing county park rangers, to arrest nude sunbathers, on national park beaches. * * * Stephen [Stephen’s Website](http://stephen.fathom.org) Satellite Hunting 2.0.1 (Y2K compliant!) visible satellite pass prediction shareware available for download at [Satellite Hunting](http://stephen.fathom.org/sathunt.html) ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2000, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/29 "2000-02-16T03:59:00Z")
By golly, I’m inspired by the picture in my mind of all those casual Europeans strolling about nude everywhere that you can go barefoot! I plan to try it myself this summer, but only topless as that’s as far as New York state, unfortunately, will let me go. Some places I’ll try are out to flag down the ice cream truck; a stroll to the park to watch teenagers shoot baskets; riding on the tram alongside the lake; swimming, of course; maybe hitching a ride up to the 7-11. I’ll let you know how it works out in , oh, let’s say August. ---
**Author:** ![NanoByte](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecc23a/32.png) [@NanoByte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NanoByte)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2000, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/30 "2000-02-16T04:21:00Z")
johnnyharvard: > [@](#): > > And is there a minimum age for said “baby”? Do you really mean “minimum”, not ‘maximum’? Stephen: Well, Florida governments can’t exactly tell the federal government how to run there parks. Here, in NoCal, beach nudity is **less** likely to be bothered, I understand, where it is on the local National Seashore (and not on a beach well-populated with the fully suited), although parts of state beaches aren’t bothered either. The Feb. 21 Time Magazine has an article (not online) on recent police activity even in Rio, of all places, against going topless. A 70-yr-old law was used. However, the public staged a bunch of protests and the mayor backed down, so the Girl from [Ipanema](http://www.ipanema.com/ipanema.htm#top) is back. The local bishop is still bothered though. Ray (Hey, in 2 yr, I’ll be as old as that law.) ---
**Author:** ![Babar714](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/779978/32.png) [@Babar714](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babar714)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2000, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/31 "2000-02-16T05:28:00Z")
I’m not sure I believe other peoples are allowed by law to be nude in public. Please post more links… please. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2000, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/32 "2000-02-16T17:04:00Z")
I went to UCSD, which is right behind Blacks beach which was once the first legal nude beach in the USA. Should be links to it on the net. ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2000, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/33 "2000-02-16T17:24:00Z")
[abstruse “in” reference]Stephen, you’re only permitted to use your lawnmower nude if you are married to it.[/abstruse “in” reference] 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2000, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/34 "2000-02-17T06:29:00Z")
Let me join the crowd of topless sun-bathers by stating that even in conservative Switzerland, it is legal for women to be topless in public swimming places. How does the law treat nudist beaches? Is it a “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, or is it actually legal if the beaches are private? Now you’ve got me thinking of Peter Sellars as the great Jacques Clouseau, in “A short in the dark.” Hahaha! ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2000, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/35 "2000-02-17T06:34:00Z")
Polycarp: I got it! 😃 But its probably not a good idea to lawnmow while nude\>but I guess in Your case, there’d be nothing to worry about! ---
**Author:** ![Vestal\_Blue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/5e9695/32.png) [@Vestal\_Blue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vestal_Blue)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2000, 6:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/36 "2000-02-17T06:55:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally posted by zuma: > \*\* > > what is really so wrong with driving to the grocery store naked during the hot summer months? \*\* Sun drenched vinyl seats… 😃 * * * VB I could never eat a mouse raw…their little feet are probably real cold going down. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2000, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/37 "2000-02-17T01:11:00Z")
There are plenty of tribes that walk around naked. ---
**Author:** ![Stephen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/96bed5/32.png) [@Stephen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephen)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2000, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359/38 "2000-02-17T01:43:00Z")
> [@](#): > > How does the law treat nudist beaches? Is it a “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, or is it actually legal if the beaches are private? It appears to be a case by case, local issue. In Miami, for instance, topless sunbathing is the norm on some beaches. On others, there are areas where “Beyond this point you may encounter nude sunbathers.” But, if you go up the coast to Canaveral, there are areas which have been traditionally nude for over 30 years, but local law enforcement keeps arresting people from time to time, hoping to get a test case to go their way for a change. * * * Stephen [Stephen’s Website](http://stephen.fathom.org) Satellite Hunting 2.0.1 (Y2K compliant!) visible satellite pass prediction shareware available for download at [Satellite Hunting](http://stephen.fathom.org/sathunt.html) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nudity/7359.md?page=1)