Signs that fail to warn

Recently my husband and I were taking a short hike in Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve and were surprised to find this cautionary sign. I wondered if a non-native speaker would understand that this is a warning sign of what lies ahead for a visitor or if (s)he would recognize the meaning of steep stone steps.

Why write a warning sign as a tongue twister? What are tongue twisters? Every language has them. They are often poems or lines with combinations of words that are difficult to say in quick succession, such as "She sells seashells by the seashore." In the example above, after the number "118," there are three words all beginning with the two-letter combination of "st" (steep, stone, and steps).  Try to say these three words as quickly as possible. Here you have a sign written as a tongue-twister.

The important part of the sign, however, comes at the end "proceed with care." It is great to have fun with native speakers visiting the park, but what about the non-native speaker who fails to understand that this is a warning sign to be cautious or careful? I think it fails.

The Poop on Dog Poop!

One of the most ineffective signs I have seen around southern California was this one in downtown Los Angeles. It was next to the historic landmark, the Angels Flight Railway.

Without a drawing or image of a dog defecating, it is very unlikely that a non-native speaker (or even a native speaker) would recognize this multi-syllabic word for "poop" or "sh_t."

Do you know what LAMC sec. 53.49 is?  Why is that part written in the same font and size as the message?  It carries no meaning unless you happen to have the Los Angeles Municipal Code handy.  It refers to a city law that makes dog-owners responsible for cleaning up their dog's poop in a public area. If a dog-owner doesn't pick up the poop, (s)he could be fined $20. Since there were plenty of dog messes lying around, this sign clearly wasn't doing its job.

I wonder why. There is zero power in the passive voice ("must be removed...by owners").  Also, though I understand the words used in the sign, I was confused. Who are "owners under penalty of law"? Doesn't this law apply to everyone who walks a dog on public property? Maybe we need advertising agents to create our street signage.

***By the way, there are other meanings of poop that have nothing to do with "dog defecation."