Oh, @#$%! Don’t Drop an F-Bomb in This Town
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If you have a hard time keeping your language in check, you should probably stay away from Middleborough, Mass (USA). — either that, or clean up your act.
you are caught swearing in public, that’s a $20 fine. It was one of a string of fines the town passed on Monday night that also included a $50 fine for littering, a $50 fine for shoveling snow into the street and a $300 fine for smoking marijuana in public.
The ban comes at a time when swearing is at an all-time high: Los Angeles psychotherapist Nancy Irwin told MSNBC that the tough economy has prompted more cursing.
“I’ve been dropping the F-bomb every time I look at the Dow or my 401(k) statement!” April Thomas, a 35-year old freelance writer from Watkinsville, Ga., told MSNBC.
Banning swearing isn’t a new thing — there are also bans in Australia, Russia, Dubai and at least nine U.S. states.
And, they make $20 look like a bargain: In Rockville, it’s a $100 fine and in Dubai, swearing is punishable by six months in jail.
To be clear, the Middleborough ban isn’t intended for the occasional curse word in a private conversation — it was meant more to curb loud public swearing by kids in downtown Middleborough.
Police Chief Bruce D. Gates said “cussing tickets would not be issued to two guys watching a sporting event that went bad or if someone who drops their ice cream Drop an F-bomb according to the Patriot Ledger.
Thanks for clearing that up, chief. Just one more question — people drop the F-bomb over ice cream? I get over your 401(k) — but @#$%-ing ICE CREAM?!