Don't die: You will be punished!

@ebsharer (5515)
United States
March 5, 2008 2:32pm CST
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080305/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_france_election_cemetery;_ylt=Ar6d73vT3gJyi.zD6I.u.tHtiBIF Here is the artical I will remember for a long time! ALL QUOTED FROM LINK ABOVE: BORDEAUX, France (Reuters) - The mayor of a village in southwest France has threatened residents with severe punishment if they die, because there is no room left in the overcrowded cemetery to bury them. In an ordinance posted in the council offices, Mayor Gerard Lalanne told the 260 residents of the village of Sarpourenx that "all persons not having a plot in the cemetery and wishing to be buried in Sarpourenx are forbidden from dying in the parish". It added: "Offenders will be severely punished". The mayor said he was forced to take drastic action after an administrative court in the nearby town of Pau ruled in January that the acquisition of adjoining private land to extend the cemetery would not be justified. Lalanne, who celebrated his 70th birthday on Wednesday and is standing for election to a seventh term in this month's local elections, said he was sorry that there had not been a positive outcome to the dilemma. "It may be a laughing matter for some, but not for me," he said. PLEASE help me to understand how they could punish you if your dead!
1 person likes this
2 responses
@paid2write (5201)
11 Mar 08
I have seen this reported many times now. Some people see it as a joke, but if you read the quote, the mayor is saying that if you live in his parish and have not already got a cemetery plot you have to die somewhere else. So any old people or sick members of the community are being told to leave. He could only impose punishment on the relatives who had lost a loved one in his parish. I hope this mayor is not re-elected. He should have looked at other ways to solve the problem before making a threat which is now all over the internet, bringing bad publicity for himself and his village.
1 person likes this
@jaredlp (418)
• United States
6 Mar 08
well in our country remember they tax you when u die so guess thats a form of punishment. Gotta wonder what they would do if you dont pay though.
1 person likes this
@ebsharer (5515)
• United States
11 Mar 08
I guess thats left up to the "next of kin" funny being the next of kin can make you rich and poor at the same time!