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Re:Prostitution decriminalized: Rhode Island’s experiment by Iv on Monday August 07, 2017 @08:39AM (#14947048)
I am pretty sure that the French unemployment office is strictly forbidden to ask their religions to practitioners. And French law does not recognize any religion, so it would actually be a breach of our very strict secularity laws to give rights (to refuse a given job and keep benefits) to a believer of one religion compared to another.

Actually this office is widely criticized to propose absurd job offers to candidates as they are pressured to remove candidates from benefits lists, either by finding them a job (rare) or by having them refuse two jobs in a row (more common).

Their scenario was really not that implausible.

Re:Prostitution decriminalized: Rhode Island’s experiment by JoeAltmaier on Monday August 07, 2017 @08:55AM (#14947141)
The French have been proud of having technical separate religion and state since 1905. But I question this - it was only 1993 when babies quit being required (by law) to be named after Catholic saints. Religion inserts its power in many ways.
Re:Prostitution decriminalized: Rhode Island’s experiment by Iv on Monday August 07, 2017 @09:25AM (#14947264)
Well, knowing first hand that some French-born nationals that were not names after saints I knew this was not true but you made me google it to see where this specific date comes from. So here is the whole thing.

The law (from the early 19th century) said that names for newborns should either be chosen in the calendars (plural, no religion mentioned) or from known people in history. So from the beginning, Mohammed was an acceptable name for instance.

A law from 1966 recognized that this was vague and not really applied, as usage varied (basically it was just used to deny too harmful names to kids) and decided to give a broader definition, allowing explicitly names from mythology, regional names, composed names, variation and abbreviated versions.

In 1981 the sole interdiction was to choose a name that "would not be judged ridiculous".

The 1993 version changes even that and says (more appropriately IMO) that the officer registering the names can delay the thing, if he judges that the choice of name is contrary to "the interest of the child". A judge then has to decide or deny. I remember a case involving a «Pikachu», a «Satan» and, I think, a «Jihad».

Names like Anakin or Gandalf were likely acceptable even under the 1966 law.

Re:Prostitution decriminalized: Rhode Island’s experiment by hellbanner on Monday August 07, 2017 @10:15AM (#14947576)
For more on how legibility (through naming, street grids, single-crop farms etc) acts a prerequisite for manipulation, check out Seeing Like A State: How Certain Schemes To Improve The Human Condition Have Failed.

https://www.amazon.com/Seeing-like-State-Certain-Condition/d...

Re:Prostitution decriminalized: Rhode Island’s experiment by throwanem on Monday August 07, 2017 @10:34AM (#14947733)
An excellent recommendation which I unreservedly second.
Re:Prostitution decriminalized: Rhode Island’s experiment by JoeAltmaier on Monday August 07, 2017 @10:18AM (#14947602)
Thanks! I too researched it, but did not find your sources. I appreciate the effort!