Pull ’em up, Dallas, baggy pants could cost you

Ron Price wants to grab the city of Dallas by the seat of its pants.

“My problem is when grown men walk around our cities with their pants well below their buttocks with all their underwear exposed,” says Price, a trustee of the Dallas Independent School District. “No one needs to see anyone else’s underwear.”

And Price thinks there ought to be a law.

“Pull it up, or pay up!” he says. “Either you can pull your pants up, or get a ticket and pay up.”

He's proposing that low-riding violators get hit with a fine of up to $50. Price, who as a school board trustee pushed through a dress code for Dallas public schools, says it's time for citizens of every color to literally tighten their belts.

“It's not about race,” he says. “It's not about gender. It's an issue of respect and honor.”

It's not a new look. You can trace it back to a rap video by Kriss Kross and underwear ads, both circa 1992. And like long hair, miniskirts and grunge, it's a trend lost on those above a certain age.

The concept of a crackdown on low-rise pants isn't unique to Dallas. It's an idea that's already been floated in Florida, Virginia and Louisiana, with no success. Turns out it's always easier to deplore fashion than to legislate it.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

“I think you have to be retarded to have your pants sagging, but I don't know, it's kind of tricky ground,” says one man. “You might be stepping on personal freedom.”

And that's the issue, coupled with the crime problem in Dallas. Cops here need to be more than the fashion police.

“I think you have to set your priorities,” says city councilman Ed Oakley. “I’m not sure that we should be going down the road of inhibiting individual behavior.”

No, says Ron Price. We should.

How would the proposed law apply to women or to the occasional plumber? Price doesn't know, but it would put the “under” back in underwear. No ifs, ands or ... well, you get the idea.