January 10, 2008
We May Have Ruined the No Pants Metro Ride
When last we told you about the Facebook group attempting to organize a No Pants Metro Ride on Saturday afternoon, you the commentariat expressed a good deal of skepticism and curmudgeon-y displeasure at the prospect of so many pantsless people riding Metro. Well, it turns out the mere fact of us pointing it out may have ruined the whole thing for those who did like the idea and planned to participate.
We've since received some reliable information that Metro, Metro Transit Police, and possibly even the MPD, were alerted to the No Pants ride after reading our story and will be out in extra force on Saturday in an attempt to deter and possibly even arrest people for indecent exposure. Calls to Metro's spokesperson have gone unreturned so far, but we'll update this post as soon as we hear back with more details.
There are currently 194 confirmed participants of the No Pants Metro Ride on Saturday listed on Facebook, and 271 maybes. The organizers have also posted this update:
Routing assignments will be made the day of (since our cover's already been blown by Dcist.com and Express we don't want to give away too much yet). Do remember, also, that you're participating at your own risk--DC cops can be a little over-zealous at times, so that's all the more reason to be polite and orderly, and to wear relatively modest undies.Good luck to those of you who still plan to take off your pants on Metro Saturday afternoon.
Also: Free Ride talked to Metro spokesperson Lisa Farbstein earlier this week about the No Pants event and she told tham that Metrorail riders should wear clothes or risk arrest for indecent exposure or disorderly conduct.
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How the fuck is your "cover blown" when you post a notice on a fucking public website.
What is the event protesting, exactly?
So this raises a good question: What's the Metrorail dress code? After all, there is a fine line between undies, shorts, bathing suit bottoms, miniskirts, etc.
Is it the amount of leg exposed? The number of layers of fabric between the genitals and the outside world?
So I can't imagine what the fuzz is going to do about it unless, well, there is fuzz showing. If anything, Metro should be happy to get their weekend ridership up. With their new fares, they can use the extra revenue to unsuckify the service.
Guess Guess, I think they are protesting the fact that they did not get enough attention as child.
Too bad DCist, ahem, exposed them....sorry
Note to self: wear undies without crotch slit.
you may have ruined it for the other cities going pantless this weekend as well
http://www.thebostonchannel.com/news/15018562/detail.html
I guess the dislexia is kicking in because when I read the headline, I saw "We May Have Ruined Our Pants on the Metro Ride," which can happen to the best of us on $1 a piece sushi night.
Hint: there's a reason why it's $1 a piece. They were going to throw it out anyway because it's been in the fridge since Thursday.
But I wanted to see balls!
DC Statute § 22-1312. Lewd, indecent, or obscene acts.
(a) It shall not be lawful for any person or persons to make any obscene or indecent exposure of his or her person, or to make any lewd, obscene, or indecent sexual proposal in the District of Columbia under penalty of not more than $300 fine, or imprisonment of not more than 90 days, or both, for each and every such offense.
And
§ 22-1321. Disorderly conduct.
Whoever, with intent to provoke a breach of the peace, or under circumstances such that a breach of the peace may be occasioned thereby: (1) acts in such a manner as to annoy, disturb, interfere with, obstruct, or be offensive to others; (2) congregates with others on a public street and refuses to move on when ordered by the police; (3) shouts or makes a noise either outside or inside a building during the nighttime to the annoyance or disturbance of any considerable number of persons; (4) interferes with any person in any place by jostling against such person or unnecessarily crowding such person or by placing a hand in the proximity of such person's pocketbook, or handbag; or (5) causes a disturbance in any streetcar, railroad car, omnibus, or other public conveyance, by running through it, climbing through windows or upon the seats, or otherwise annoying passengers or employees, shall be fined not more than $250 or imprisoned not more than 90 days, or both.
You decide!
I can't wait until all these people get their lifetime bans from Metro. Should make my morning commute a bit less crowded.
Yea...really confused about how pantslessness = indecent exposure. I'm not sure there's any legal justification for it. So I guess they could arrest people all day long, then end up just having to let people go. But how great to say, "yea...Metro police arrested me because I wasn't wearing pants."
I think pantsless happy hour might be more effective in shock value in DC. No one looks up on Metro - much less pays attention to anything beyond the paper or Ipod. But Happy Hour...it would be a quandry..."I know the guy without pants could give me a job one day...but he's not wearing pants...so do I network or not???"
this threat is totally bogus. i guess people can get arrested for anything. still, if you're covered up as much as a bathing suit, how can they really prosecute you? what if you were sunbathing on the mall and then got on the metro?
disorderly is a bit different, since just about anything can constitute disorderly. still, if everyone is just sitting around minding their own business, the fact that many of them are pantless shouldn't present a problem.
That first statute has been interpreted to only apply when the person's genitals are exposed, so if people are wearing underwear, they should not be arrested under it. Duvallon v. District of Columbia, 515 A.2d 724 (D.C. 1986).
Lawyers are so annoying.
damn! and I just got my cootchie a brazilian. oh well.
This is mickey mouse high school shit. These people need to grow up.
Make sure you have your bail money in your socks, pantless ones. DC cops have no problem arresting people who are legally protesting and have the appropriate permits (and even those who are just watching), so I predict they'll have no qualms about serving up the old wood shampoo before they throw your goosebump-covered asses in jail for "violating" the stunningly ambiguous disorderly conduct laws.
"But officer, these are running shorts."
"I know obscenity when I see it, goddammit." [crack, smack, pop goes the baton across your beret-wearing hipster head]
I hope there are no kids around. Hate for someone to walk into art project and walk out a convicted sex predator.
You didn't ruin it. It was already all over the map around here.
Now, once something is on Facebook, it's fair game--especially if the group is public.
Plus, I dunno, how can it be indecent exposure? The rule in Boston is no thongs and nothing less than thongs.
That's sad. When I tell people that DC is one of the most conservative cities in America, people laugh at me. Not that I want to see pantsless overweight hipsters on my Metro commute, but can people in this city ever lighten up and have fun?
I'm pretty sure this thread proves DC is one of the most conservative cities in America.
Conservative????
You call having some woman tear the hair from your butt hole conservative???
Tsk. Tsk.
Nevermind the potential violations of civil rights, but why does this even register on Metro Police's radar? I guess they really do like arresting people for nothing. I suppose since no terrorists have tried to blow up our transit system, they're just simply bored.
I'm not the biggest fan of this outing since there's no real point to it other than to confuse or irritate people, but they still have a right to do what they want as long as they're not obviously breaking the law.
The organizers should've nixed the metro in favor of what DC is best known for: protests. Imagine a march on the Capitol in their undies shouting, "Down with pants!" Given the fact that some of the anti-war protests and pride parades have gotten away with practically topless girls, I think they'll have more success.
If leather daddy bears at the DC Pride parade can expose their bare asses in leather chaps along a 2-mile stretch of the city, mind you in the presence of dozens of police officers along the route, then what are the grounds for arresting someone who's wearing underwear? Where's the equal protection?
Get those hippies!
Hey you crazy kids... No Pants Day 2008 is officially May 2!
http://www.nopantsday.com/wp/
As long as they wipe after themselves, I'm okay with it.
they can't arrest us for wearing hot pants that are way too tight.
Dcist isn't the only one reporting on this. the -ists might just blow it for everyone! mwahahahaha
http://chicagoist.com/2008/01/09/no_pants_2k8.php
Note to self: have spare shorts in backpack in case arrested. Do YOU want to spend any time in jail while pantsless? DO you? Come on, Metro's one thing, but the lock up?! ;) Reminds me of that scene from Born in East LA... oh wait, that required pants.