Cool article. There's just one question it doesn't address: running on asphalt. Is a soft-soled shoe still bad if the surface you're running on is rock-hard?
Either way, for shits and giggles, I'm going to try running in my Converse All-Stars and see how it feels. I figure the worst that could happen is that it hurts too much and I'll have to walk back...
Some pinhead bureaucrat feeling his oats, me thinks. I suppose the rules are the rules (you don't know that "water" wasn't pulled out of their toilet, I suppose), but I figure there's a certain level of caveat emptor if you're shopping at a farmer's market anyway.