The Bay Area

I like to post articles I think share the uniqueness of the Bay Area. Here's another good one:

San Franciscans who prefer to have their food in the nude are facing opposition. Last Thursday, the ironically named Supervisor Scott Wiener proposed an ordinance on public nudity etiquette that would require nudists dining in restaurants to forgo their naturalist ways and don clothing.

Public nudity is legal in San Francisco as long as the nude individual is not in a state of arousal. But last Thursday's meeting of the Board of Supervisors' Public Safety Committee resulted in a ruling that, if approved by the full Board, will ban practicing nudists from public eateries, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Wiener's proposal also requires those in the buff to place down a towel or barrier of some sort before they sit down on public seating.

"San Francisco is a liberal and tolerant city, and we pride ourselves on that fact," Supervisor Wiener said in a statement. "Yet, while we have a variety of views about public nudity, we can all agree that when you sit down naked, you should cover the seat, and that you should cover up when you go into a food establishment."

The hearing did not draw the throngs of nude enthusiasts that the committee expected. Only two individuals showed up to testify and they were for Wiener's proposal. The ban is not thought to be an attempt to outlaw nudity in San Francisco altogether but rather is a simple issue of public health.