How many times have you heard a story come out of South Africa, and you think “You couldn’t even make this shit up”?

With things like the legless Olympian who shot his girlfriend, or the fake sign-language interpreter at Madiba’s funeral, or even the pastor who tried to sell photos of himself in heaven – SA dishes out the weird.

Buzzfeed even made a list dedicated to South Africa’s 15 weirdest aspects.

But then you get Florida – and the US is obsessed with the state and its super weirdness. Here’s the opening paragraph from VICE’s latest interview:

It seems like almost every day there’s another impossibly bizarre news story set in a certain Gulf coast state. The man who claimed he was seduced by a dolphin? Florida. The guy who vaped his buddy’s semen? Yep, Florida. The patriot who landed a gyrocopter on the Capitol Lawn to protest money in politics? A Floridian. Social media accounts like @_FloridaMan are so popular, you could argue that the Sunshine State is known for its oddball citizens as much as it is known for its beaches, theme parks, and orange juice.

So VICE went along to Florida local, and journalist, Craig Pittman, to find out just what makes the state so weird:

VICE: OK, so why is Florida such a hotbed for weird news stories?
Craig Pittman: We’re the third-most populous state, with 20 million people and nearly 100 million annual visitors all crammed into a narrow peninsula where we can ram our cars into each other and yell at each other in a dozen different languages. Also, we’re a place with a long tradition of living for today, grabbing for the brass ring, and paying no attention to the possible consequences, which are usually pretty dire.

It’s probably one of the easiest interviews to read, because every question asked by VICE is purely about Florida’s outrageous past situations. Check the rest HERE and you’ll be in for a good time.

But before you go, here’s one last one:

If someone was visiting Florida for the first time, what would you tell them to expect?
The unexpected, of course! That’s why we’re the Most Interesting State in the Union. If you want to visit someplace boring, go to Wyoming or Idaho. If you want to see a woman with blonde dreadlocks climb a banyan tree and play the accordion while singing John Denver songs, just because she likes doing that—well then come on down to Florida!

But stay away from post offices. In 2012, so many Floridians crashed their cars into post offices that the US Postal Service ran ads asking people to please stop.

And you thought South Africa was special – although flipping through Die Son, we sure can match them from time to time.

[source: vice]