Here's an amusing article about the BYU dress policy from a recent issue of The Chronicle of Higher Education, sent to me by my friend Bob:

Flip-Flop on Thongs
by Christopher Flores
June 14, 2002

When some incoming freshmen at Brigham Young University's Idaho campus read the institution's dress code this spring, they were surprised to learn that "thongs" were taboo on the Mormon campus.

Incredulous, they called the dean of students' office, demanding to know how officials justified underwear regulation and how such a rule could possibly be enforced. That's when officials realized they needed to get with the terms of the times: "Thongs" today suggests a skimpy type of underwear or bikini bottom, not flip-flops, to which the university's years-old policy referred.

Last month, officials rewrote the provision, stating instead that "flip-flops" fall under the rubric of "inappropriate" or "immodest attire" at the university. While the policy bans flip-flops considered "grubby," such as rubber beach sandals and shower clogs, it does allow well-constructed sandals made of canvas or leather to be worn in semi-casual settings, including classrooms.

"We have a very strong belief that dress and grooming have an effect on how you respond in course work and the overall attitude on campus," says Jim E. Sessions, the dean. "Grubby thongs don't reflect well."

As for the other kind of thongs? "We certainly don't regulate underwear," says Mr. Sessions. "But if someone were to wear just a thong, it's safe to say that that would be way outside our dress and grooming standards."