# Who's responsible for bible tract litter? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 12, 2003, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-responsible-for-bible-tract-litter/154684 "2003-02-12T22:55:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Murasaki312a](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/898d66/32.png) [@Murasaki312a](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Murasaki312a)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2003, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-responsible-for-bible-tract-litter/154684/1 "2003-02-12T22:55:19Z")
Once it’s on my car, that is. It just galls me that I’m forced to actually take care of it just because some nut thinks I ought to read it. Not that I would enjoy littering by throwing it on the ground, but it would be nice if there were some recourse (such as charging the perpetrator for any littering caused by the tracts if you could prove it). ---
**Author:** ![Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/50afbb/32.png) [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2003, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-responsible-for-bible-tract-litter/154684/2 "2003-02-12T23:46:03Z")
AFAIK, the person who throws the litter on the ground is the one who’s legally responsible for “littering”, not the missionary or the pizza parlor or the person running for public office who stuck their flyers under your windshield wipers. Some tracts do have the name and address of a local church printed on them, and if you really feel strongly about it, you can contact them and make your displeasure known. Ditto for the pizza parlor, and as for the mayoral wannabe, just vote for the other idjit. ---
**Author:** ![Achernar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e274bd/32.png) [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2003, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-responsible-for-bible-tract-litter/154684/3 "2003-02-13T00:53:25Z")
So I can legally go out to a parking lot and dump all my trash on someone’s car? Sweet… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Governor\_Quinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d26b3c/32.png) [@Governor\_Quinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Governor_Quinn)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2003, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-responsible-for-bible-tract-litter/154684/4 "2003-02-13T01:29:49Z")
I’ve found that tracts tend to be put on car windows for the same reason parking tickets are: you notice them, and the windshield wipers (when placed correctly) keep the paper from falling off. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2003, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-responsible-for-bible-tract-litter/154684/5 "2003-02-13T10:39:04Z")
The ones who spamtract parking lots are working on a twisted assumption: Lot was saved from Sodom, and I can save this “lot.” 😉 The ones who tract restrooms are called privy-vangelists.🙂 ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2003, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-responsible-for-bible-tract-litter/154684/6 "2003-02-13T17:00:44Z")
It is not my garbage, they put litter on my car, not my responsibility. (Doesn’t matter if it’s religous or whatever.) ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2003, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-responsible-for-bible-tract-litter/154684/7 "2003-02-13T17:52:19Z")
**Duck Duck Goose** and **ftg** have given the two competing theories. Anyone got any cites or relevant legal expertise to say who’s right? ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2003, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-responsible-for-bible-tract-litter/154684/8 "2003-02-13T17:56:51Z")
Oh, and does the answer depend on whether the flyer is commercial, political or religious? ---
**Author:** ![GaryM](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garym/32/241_2.png) [@GaryM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaryM)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2003, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-responsible-for-bible-tract-litter/154684/9 "2003-02-13T17:59:40Z")
**DDG** Can I come over and put all my junk mail under your wipers? ---
**Author:** ![LordVor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/90ced4/32.png) [@LordVor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LordVor)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2003, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-responsible-for-bible-tract-litter/154684/10 "2003-02-13T19:46:15Z")
In public lots, local laws apply. In private parking lots, the owner of the parking lot sets the policy. In places that ban this activity, the reason is usually because people just drop them on the ground. So I guess the lesson is, if you don’t want to get them anymore, make them a nuisnance by dropping them on the ground, and then somebody will outlaw them. -lv ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2003, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-responsible-for-bible-tract-litter/154684/11 "2003-02-13T22:18:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Duck Duck Goose \* > \*\*AFAIK, the person who throws the litter on the ground is the one who’s legally responsible for “littering”, not the missionary or the pizza parlor or the person running for public office who stuck their flyers under your windshield wipers. > > Some tracts do have the name and address of a local church printed on them, and if you really feel strongly about it, you can contact them and make your displeasure known. > > Ditto for the pizza parlor, and as for the mayoral wannabe, just vote for the other idjit. \*\* Hey!!! :mad: 😃 — Polycarp Administrator, [The Pizza Parlor](http://thebruces.stormbirds.org/forums/index.php?s=) 😉