CNN.com ran a story yesterday detailing one of the more comical anti-terror laws currently on the books. Was it protecting Americans from shoe bombers or hijackers? Not exactly. It’s protecting Americans from people that dress in Colonial-era garb and lead mules alongside a Pennsylvania riverbank.

That’s right — some workers at the Hugh Moore Historical Park in Easton, PA are required to submit to a criminal background check as a condition of their employment. What kind of dangerous job do they perform? They pull a boat down a canal with two mules, just like in the good old days. Visitors to the park can take a ride in the boat as part of the tour. The employees who lead the mules at a staggering two mile per hour must apply for biometric Transportation Worker Identification Credentials, just like truckers and longshoremen.