Government is serious business. But reality has a funny way of injecting the absurd, chaotic and outright odd into the daily lives of public servants. Ultimately, to make the world better, you sometimes have to embrace the weird and take a risk.
Let’s end the year with a smile. Let’s celebrate our favourite silly stories from the world of government this year.
UK town council postpones New Year’s fireworks for a walrus 🎆
The harbour at Scarborough, UK, was a resting spot for Thor, a 1,000kg walrus. Anxious to not disturb him, the local government called off the fireworks display. He responded with an inappropriate peep show, then left. I look forward to reading the council minutes. —IFL Science
Mexico sets up a “tortilla taskforce” 🌮
Okay, so it has a serious job — investigating the safety of genetically modified corn imported from the USA. Otherwise, we’d be putting in an application today.
— Quartz
This ain’t no teddy bear’s picnic 🧸
Birmingham City Council made a short film where Bordesley, a giant teddy bear, was put in charge of the city’s £3bn budget. It’s hard work, it turns out.
— The Guardian
The German Postal Service bids a fond farewell to the telegram. They closed the telegram era with a flurry of 3,228 messages.
— AP News
Did you get your Valentine a heart-shaped Croatian island? ♥️
Of course not, but someone did. To raise funds for the local community, part of the “island of love” is up for sale.
— Reuters
“My lips were too dry to buy a ticket for public transport” 💄
Ticket officers in Helsinki have been collecting their favourite excuses for wannabe free-riders, and they’ve turned them into a song (in Finnish).
— Hufvudstadsbladet
This is not financial advice 📈🚀💸
A federal judge in the USA ruled that certain emojis can constitute financial advice, and land their users in hot regulatory water. We’re waiting for the emoji translation of The Art of the Deal.
— Make Use Of
The moon could soon get its own timezone 🌝
This is to help coordinate work between space agencies, but it will inevitably come in handy for booking pub seats for the first lunar World Cup.
— Sky News
Would you drink cockroach milk? 🪳🍼
Probably not — and hopefully you don’t have to. But it’s one of several provocative “superfoods of the future” designed to meet the growing challenge of feeding the world.
— The MIT Press Reader
Smog is a major buzzkill for mating insects 💨🦟
Another reason for public servants to take air pollution seriously: It stops insects from getting buzzy.
— France24
How a football match created a new border ⚽
Ba’ Green is a patch of Scotland that sits on the English side of the River Tweed. It used to change hands through an annual football match between two border towns — and is now Scottish. Both nations can be grateful this system isn’t used elsewhere.
— The Origins of Football in Scotland
This article is reproduced from Apolitical.
