AP - Haley Barbour gets strip club bill

Outrage over a 20-foot, anatomically correct stallion outside a strip club in rural northern Mississippi could lead to a new law allowing counties to regulate such establishments.

The Senate on Friday sent Gov. Haley Barbour a bill that would give Mississippi's 82 counties the option to write rules and regulations for strip clubs that try to open in rural, unincorporated areas.

The bill was filed in response to a strip club called The Pony that opened about three years ago in Lowndes County, bringing with it the shiny silver stallion that locals say is wearing a pink bikini.

The Pony sits just off U.S. 45 outside West Point -- a highway frequently used by sports fans traveling from Tupelo down to Mississippi State University games in Starkville.

Rep. Gary Chism, R-Columbus, said he'd receive numerous complaints from residents about The Pony's horse.

"Since I've filed the bill, I've gotten a lot of telephone calls and encouragement from pastors and others. But really what started it all was that bikini on that stallion," Chism said.

AP
3/6/10