Curses--Foiled Again!

"Whoever having arrived at the age of discretion accosts or addresses another person with profane or obscene language in a street or other public place, may be punished by a fine of not more than $20.00."
Article 8, Section 5, Bylaws of Middleborough, MA

The bylaw above was originally adopted by the good people of Middleborough in 1968.  Apparently it didn't work very well, and was rarely enforced.  And in recent years the use of profanity has been on the rise in certain parts of town.  So at a town meeting held on June 11 local police were given authority to treat public cursing as a civil offense.  And the power to write out tickets for offenders.  The fine, despite inflation, remains $20.00.  The vote was 180-53.  Will it make a difference?  Who knows.  I guess its OK to cuss out Uncle Murray in your living room, but not at the supermarket.  Maybe cops should just carry bars of soap and take care of things on the spot!

I suppose one could get upset about the new regulation. (In fact some folks did--and they held a rally on June 24, attended by under one hundred folks, many from out of town.  An anti-anti-profanity rally.) It certainly calls into question certain constitutional issues, like first amendment rights to free speech.  But laws and regulations aren't going to curb the tongues of folks inclined to curse. And what really upsets me about this isn't the fact folks are cursing up a blue steak in Puritan country, or that government is horning in on free speech.  What upsets me is the vote itself.

Middleborough has 23,000 residents.  I don't know how many of them are registered voters, but its got to be a lot more than the 233 who put the new regulation into effect!  Talk about low voter turnout!  If this were an isolated incident, if Middleborough was an anomaly, I wouldn't be concerned.  But it is happening all over America.  More and more people are saying, "To hell with voting!  What difference does it make anyway?"  (Or as law abiding people say in Middleborough, "The heck with voting!")

I hope that folks will clean up their language in Middleborough--and anywhere else its getting too rough.  But more than that, I hope folks will start taking the franchise seriously.  Democracy only works if we are all willing to participate.  Not voting?  Now that's a real civil offense!