The last time somebody told me that “In America, everything which is not forbidden is permitted” I finally uderstood why the Americans work so hard to make sure they expressly forbid everything.
I was walking through Newport, RI as a tourist once, and I came across a truly tiny public park in a residential area; 10 by 20 meters (or yards, if you prefer), a little grass, a few flower beds, one park bench.
And a sign post with about ten separate signs threatening various fines for different activities. The park closes at 6pm. I’ve got a photo of that signpost somewhere.
I’ve never been to Singapore, but prejudice tells me that they have lots of rules, too, and if you break them, you will be whipped.
And Japan is amazing: The signs politely say “Please don’t …”, and If you break this rule, then… what do you mean, break this rule? Nobody ever breaks this rule, the sign said ‘please don’t do this’, so nobody does. Now that’s what I call civilized.
