Apparently, there are people who want to be buried with their pets. It just so happens to be against the law in Louisiana to be buried with Fideaux when you die.

State Senator Conrad Appel (R-Metairie), who is actually one of the better members of the Louisiana Legislature, filed SB 166 to allow the practice of being buried with your pets. The AP reports that Appel sprinkled the cremated remains of his mother’s dachsund in her casket when she was buried.

You would think this would be noncontroversial, but the cemetary owners wouldn’t have it. They successfully killed the bill in the Senate Judiciary A Committee.

Gerald Melancon, a funeral director from Carencro, said he and other owners aren’t against the concept. But Appel’s SB166, as written, would create problems for them. “There are a lot of issues in here that need to be clarified,” Melancon said, waving a copy of the measure.

For instance, the legislation would require cemeteries to keep records on the name and species of the pet. But the software used to keep up with the human interred doesn’t include any place for that information. Then there’s the issue of how to handle a spouse who wants to be buried with a pet but also next to their deceased spouse who already is buried in a section of the cemetery where pets are not allowed.

“It’s going to mess up everything,” Melancon said. “We’ll be back here next year to fix this law.”

The Legislature fixes bills all the time. That’s not a serious objection. Plus as Appel pointed out, cemetaries were not required to bury pets and humans together.

This is a stupid law and the objection to Appel’s bill to correct it is a stupid one.

Believe it or not, there are people in Louisiana who want the Legislature to have more control over their lives. Why should we give them the opportunity?