Don't Yell 'Take It Off' Here

popular summer Motorcycle Week, the city council of Laconia, N.H. passed an ordinance making it a crime to encourage women to take off their tops. You can be arrested even if they just say no. \n Initially, the ordinance was written to just ban public nudity and public sex. The part about asking women to show their boobs was added later, when some complained men would grab women, pound on their cars or refuse to let them pass on the street until they provided a topless flash. \n Women have been given the right to file complaints about men who request them to disrobe. \n Now, according to the law, if you yell, "Take it off," you had better be able to prove in court you were referring to somebody's weight problem or shoes. \n It's the latest chapter in the town's love-hate relationship with Motorcycle Week, the 75th anniversary of which last summer drew an estimated 300,000 people. Cyclists come for the motorcycle races in nearby Loudon and, especially, for the parties at Laconia's Weirs Beach lakeside amusement area. \n Once a wild and woolly affair characterized by riots, the event has become more peaceful in recent years. Lately, though, police say drunkenness and related activities are on the rise. Last summer, police arrested hundreds on alcohol, drug and motor vehicle charges. \n The new ordinance was approved 5-1. The lone dissenter said he was in favor of what the law was trying to accomplish but believed it put an unconstitutional restraint on free speech. \n "Telling someone to take it off can mean a lot of things," Councilor Roland Maheu told a local reporter. "What if the person wants you to take off your shoes? I think you're opening yourselves to a wide array of criticism and ridicule with this." \n Nonetheless, the ordinance won the support of the Motorcycle Week promoter, who said the city shouldn't have to tolerate such outlandish behavior. In addition, the town mayor said he had been assured by the town solicitor that the law would be upheld in court.