Dogs Must Be Carried
by Chris MacDonald
This sign is posted on the side of an escalator at Manchester airport in the UK.
As the sender of the photo pointed out, it’s a very odd thing to require that one carry a dog in order to be allowed to use the escalator, especially given restrictions on bringing dogs into the UK. A passport surely must be carried. But a dog?
But of course, what it really means is “those who have a dog with them must carry their dogs rather than letting the dog walk up the escalator.” But that’s rather a lot of words for a normative sign, isn’t it?
Brevity may be the soul of wit, but it’s also the source of a lot of ambiguity.
Thanks to Wayne Norman for sending the photo.
Normative Signs: The Poetry of "Ought" 
Therefore… sight-impaired people with guide dogs must take the stairs, since they probably can’t safely pick up their German Shepherds? That seems like an odd rule.
Update: apparently this sign is the target of a joke in the new Paddington movie. See the 2 minute mark in this trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFuzMlfZGWM
Might not be true, but I’ve heard that the original California open-container law essentially said that “an open container of alcoholic beverage must be carried in the trunk of your vehicle”. What’s the problem, officer? “Where’s your open container?”