Vt. Town Decides It Has No Right to Ban Soothsayers

[The Straight Story]

Vt. Town Decides It Has No Right to Ban Soothsayers

ST. JOHNSBURY, Vt. -- Behold, the future is being revealed in this corner of northern New England, and it looks bright for fortune tellers, clairvoyants, tarot card readers and anyone claiming to contact spirits.

Soothsaying remains banned in some parts of the country, but St. Johnsbury has repealed the ordinance against peering into the future that it had on the books since 1966.

"When the ordinance was lifted, I actually felt a large weight lifting from my shoulders," said Maria Pawlowski, a tarot card reader. "It was very oppressive to have to refrain from something that was as natural to me as breathing."

Fear of fraud has prompted many communities to ban fortunetelling, but critics say it is not government's place to decide whether such personal beliefs or practices are fraudulent.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/06/AR2008090602175.html

I predicted this.... ;)

[cobalt1999]

1. If stupid people want to give away their money, let them.

They'll just lose it some other way anyway. Ban the tarot card reader, and the idiots will just buy "healing crystals" or magic beans.

They'd be better off, teaching a little science to everyone and the con artists will fade away due to lack of business.

[Wiley50]

2. Sooth n/t

[Selatius]

3. There will always be fraudsters. Cynically, you could say the same of all religions. nt