80 People Reveal Shocking and Unbelievable Secrets About Their Countries You Never Knew
In France, two regions (Alsace , moselle) are not exactly laïc and church and state are not fully separated. I grew up with mandatory Christian studies in public school between ages 5 to 10 . we have more public holidays than the rest of France and our social security is also a bit better.
We have a lot of specificities due to the fact that those region have been German for a long time
honestly, even French people barely know that.
In Finland we have a brand of bread called Jussi Pussi.
Do what you will with this information.
Mississippi was the last state in the USA to ratify the 13th Amendment, which is the amendment that abolished slavery.
This occurred in 2013.
While, sure, Mississippi certainly has its history of slavery, this was more of a bookkeeping issue. In the USA, as long as three-fourths of the total number of states ratifies an amendment to the US constitution, it becomes a law for everyone. Even though Mississippi voted against the 13th Amendment, enough states voted for it. Now it is federal law. At that point, a state ratifying the amendment is more of a box checking exercise rather than having any real impact.
In the mid 90s someone realized that, hey, Mississippi still hadn’t voted for it. The state legislature came together, voted unanimously to “end slavery”, but the paperwork didn’t get submitted…and no one noticed until it was finally dealt with properly in 2013.
In England, it is illegal to “handle a Salmon suspiciously”. *The Salmon Act, 1986*.
Also in England, it is prohibited for a Welshman to be in the city of Chester before dawn, and after sunset.
Lol. I love this country.
Norway, often mentioned as one of the most well-run countries in the world, runs on caffeine.
We drink insane amounts of coffee, and we’re one of the world’s top consumers per capita. But it doesn’t stop there: Pepsi Max is our top-selling soft drink, making us (apparently) the only country where diet soda beats sugary soda. We alone drink over 9% of the world’s Pepsi Max.
Clearly, caffeine is the secret to surviving the cold and dark winters.
Ireland once had a law that made it illegal to be drunk… in your own home.
Under the Licensing Act 1872, it was technically illegal to be drunk in any public or private place, including your own house. The law stated that “every person found drunk… in any highway or other public place, whether a building or not, or on any licensed premises, shall be liable to a penalty…”
But in court cases, “any place” was occasionally argued to include your own kitchen if it was accessible to others or if others were present. While rarely enforced, it remained on the books for over 100 years.
Bonus WTF: It was once also illegal in Ireland to be drunk while in charge of a cow. 🐄🍺
Yes, you could literally be done for drunk cow-handling.
A little known fact about Scotland.
A 2016 study by the Celtic Genome Institute and the University of Inverness identified a rare mitochondrial mutation, MT-HG17(Picta) This mutation was found exclusively in a small group of Highland women descended from ancient Pictish tribes. The mutation appears to halt cellular aging entirely. According to Professional Phil McAvity, these women exhibit no telomere degradation, no signs of age-related decline, and are functionally immune to most diseases.
Locals call them ‘Gobhar Beag Feargach’ and they can theoretically live for centuries.
But they do die, just not naturally. Anecdotal records suggest they only die when enraged or insulted enough to do it out of spite. 129 year old Annie Mallish supposedly dropped dead in Feb 1983 after being arrested for fighting 5 Policemen.
Belgium supplied the uranium for the Manhattan Project. It went something like this:
Belgium government-in-exile: “So we hear you guys need this ‘uranium’ stuff.”
US government: “What? No, we don’t. And if we did that would be top secret. Seriously, who tf talked?”
Belgium: “Doesn’t matter, Congo is one of two uranium deposits in allied hands. We have 1200 tons of the weird glory rock, do you want it?”
US: “Yes, if you can get it to the African coast, we can get it across the Atlantic.”
Belgium: “No need, it’s already in the US.”
US: “It… what?”
Belgium: “It’s rare stuff. So when we moved all of our gold, silver, and other valuables here at the start of the war, we included the uranium. It’s in a warehouse on Staten Island. Has been for the past four years.”
US: “Fuuuuu… Yes, we’ll take the lot!”.
We have both the largest air force in the world (USAF) and the second largest air force (US Navy). This fact has always blown my mind.
No affordable healthcare, horrible work/life balance, the government doesn’t even pretend to care about its citizens… but, hey! We’ve got a s**t-ton of military aircraft!
Joking Hazard Enlarged Box Empty Box for Card Storage
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The Door Balancer Eliminates The Need for Door Props, Door Stops and Door Wedges
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Supa Ant Fire Safety Ball as Fire Blanket for Home and Kitchen – Fire Protection Device for House, Office, Garage, Car
(as of October 27, 2025 18:42 GMT +00:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
Joking Hazard by Cyanide & Happiness - 360+ Funny & Inappropriate Comic Cards, Hilarious Party Games | Includes Add-Your-Own-Words Cards
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