Barnsley clamps down on foul-mouthed fu*king locals

The good burghers of Barnsley had better watch their mouths for the next month, because anyone caught effing and blinding in an intimidatory fashion could be slapped with an 80 quid on-the-spot fine. The month of June promises to be relatively fu*k-free in the town centre after South Yorkshire Police and community organisation …

[Bit Brain]

Belgium!

That is all.

[Graham Marsden]

Well...

... Frak me, the frelling grexnixes have really gone over the swutting line now!

What a bunch of turlingdromes...

[Steve Evans]

Hmmm...

"The ban is apparently aimed at attracting more shoppers into the centre of Barnsley

I hope they have some good discounts on, I wouldn't fancy getting slapped with a fine for my usual reaction to the list price of some products!

[Sir Runcible Spoon]

Sir

Imagine skipping down the street, stark bollock naked and yelling

"I'm a fucking luuuuuuunatic" at the top your lungs.

Or would someone find that intimidating?

[asiaseen]

by either advice or enforcement

"Shut your fu*king mouth or we'll do it for you".

[trarch]

FTW

"The ban is apparently aimed at attracting more shoppers into the centre of Barnsley – something which could arguably better be achieved by demolishing the place and rebuilding it from scratch."

You, Sir, win. Everything.

[Intractable Potsherd]

Like most large towns in South Yorkshire ...

... Barnsley doesn't really *have* a centre, in the sense that many people mean by "town centre". There is just a nebulous area defined by a pedestrian precinct surrounded by fewer residential properties than a bit further out (Doncaster, Rotherham, and Sheffield are the same). There is absolutely no character in any of them, which makes the out-of-town shopping centres so much more attractive - they have no character either, but at least you know where the shops are, and you can park, for free, near to them.

The problem is that successive Labour controlled councils have had to show that they have no interest in history, because it was all about the rich subjugating the poor, and they did actually demolish whole town centres to start from scratch. We are now left with no historical buildings at all, and the replacements are shite.

[Sam Therapy]

Agreed, up to a point

Sheffield suffered a lot of council sponsored vandalism but for the past few years they actually seem to be doing things right. The town centre is pretty damn good now.

Sadly, I'm stuck in Chav town (Rotherham) which must rate as the carbuncle on the backside of South Yorkshire.

[Code Monkey]

Well done plod.

Those arrest quotas won't fill themselves and this is far easier than investigating burglaries.

Welcome to the Big Society everyone!

[Anonymous Coward]

Effing and blinding - a Barnsley man's tale.

Nar then, Register me old cocker. I tek some reyt offence at that knock it darn and rebuild it from scratch remark. Theres nowt up with t'tarn centre I tell thi, looks much better than it did 10 bleedin years ago, T'Market cud do wi sorting art though!

I think there'll be lots of fines too, purely due to the amount of idiots we get there on the outskirts of the centre of town. Many times I've had to tell some halfwit to stop swearing as my children (and others) are close and I don't appreciate the language. Most of them apologise but I've had a bit of more negative feedback from some of the cretins too.

Nar Im gunna tek me whippet art and get back darn t'pit afterward! See thi!

[Alister]

Nar Im gunna tek me whippet art and get back darn t'pit afterward! See thi!

WHAT! you still have a pit in Barnsley?

Blimey, thought they'd all closed long ago...

[Anonymous Coward]

Nice headline

But the plod have always had the ability to fine you for this under the all encompassing section 4 if I am not mistaken.

But they do have to warn you first.

[Anonymous Coward]

Local reaction to fine

"Are thee tekking the f*cking piss."

[EddieD]

Fous le camp, mes amis, fous le camp....

I think a phrase book may be necessary, otherwise the special defense of selective prosecution may be used quite a lot...

[Anonymous Coward]

ah right,

http://www.findaproperty.com/crimefacts.aspx?edid=00&salerent=0&areaid=1373

Yeah, swearing, that's the fucking priority aint it

[Anonymous Coward]

ah, found them...

www.barnsley.towntalk.co.uk/news/d/19708/is-it-fair-to-fine-people-for-swearing/#list_comments

[Robert E A Harvey]

you have got to read this one

http://www.barnsley.towntalk.co.uk/news/d/19732/skyline-rescue-as-barnsley-town-centre-is-shut-down/

[countd]

Oh do kindly

Fuck off.

[teapot9999]

Tell me something I didn't know

Barnsley is awful - well fuck me!

[Anonymous Coward]

I think they're confused

There's a vast difference between threatening and non-threating verbal behaviour.

They correctly state that swearing can be both, the daft fuckers fail to recognise that non-swearing speech has the same abilities.

[Anonymous Coward]

I was thinking that too...

So, it'll be legal to approach your mother-in-law in broad daylight, and say, "You're a wretched trollop and a whore - a filthy six-pence hooker whose decaying body could attract only the meth-addled or the blind; your cracked, reptilian skin, your rancid, flopping flesh, and your freakish, distorted body are an affront to humanity and an offence to God"... and it WON'T be legal to say, "Oh, you're such a bitch."

Hmm...

[SirTainleyBarking]

Do I know you?

You've obviously met my in laws

[Anonymous Coward]

Linguist?

The problem seems to be that most people fail to recognise that words have almost 0 inherent semantic meaning. If I just "s/f..k/oh bother/g" the rules that say this is acceptable are entirely arbitrary and the meaning and tone can be identical.

[Yet Another Anonymous coward]

A solution

Can I suggest that we simply replace the stuff that dogs do that you step in with the word "Illsley" ?

eg. "O illsley I forgot me keys" or "illsley off - you little illsley"

From an original idea by Dan Savage (http://www.spreadingsantorum.com/)

[hplasm]

Oh Barnsley!!

Perhaps.

[Anonymous Coward]

The title is required, and must contain letters and/or digits.

"In any case, some locals doubt the clampdown will do much to clear the air of expletives. One local summarised to the Beeb: "I think there'll be a lot of fines.""

That's the point isn't it? If the police are happy to reduce speeding fines into little more money making ventures for councils eager to find funds then it's hardly surprising that they'd try something like this...

[Anonymous Coward]

Why Barnsley?

Why not Scunthorpe?

[Anonymous Coward]

Dunt tha meen ...

... foo-king?

[TseTT]

Not all bad!

Just enjoying several beers from the Acorn brewery, Barnsley.

However im in weatherspoons pub and nowhere near Barnsley!!

[Combat Wombat]

Yeah.. at least its not a whole state

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/05/31/3231985.htm

Conservatives in Victoria Australia are doing the same thing

So glad I left.

[Charlie Clark]

Frack for Fuck!

NFT

[Trev 2]

Who decides what's swearing?

Since pretty f***ing is pretty much an everyday word in some parts of Scotland then anyone coming down from Glasgow or Dundee and "swearing" in Barnsley might be a tad confused when they get slapped by a fine.

So who decides what is and isn't swearing? Are variations swearing such as "bi-aaatch" and Father Jack's famous "Fecking"?

If it's just when directed at someone in a hostile way, then don't the existing laws on public disorder offences and such cover it anyway thus removing the need to actually bother telling people that everyone in Barnsley apparently swears...?

[Anonymous Coward]

Discounts

Bezt idea ever. I am going to get my m8's. Telz them to fucking shout at each other and will go in Currys and use my 5finger discount.

£80 finz is cheap as chipz, when we take out that 50" 3DTV. And plod could fuck them selfz before pay £80 finez.

[Anonymous Coward]

for the first time in my life..

I want to be in Ameriiccaaaaa. I'm sure if this was proposed over there not only would they 'pop a cap in yo' ass' and steal your 'sneakers' they'd force feed you the first amendment for good measure. Especially in New York.

[Efros]

Unfortunately

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35585018/ns/us_news-life/t/cuss-free-week-calif-lawmakers-voting-it/

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4378935

Also seen as a money maker in PA at least.

[Ray 8]

WTF

<Bland response to article containing colourful expletives>

[Ray Mills]

Any Sheff Wednesday supporters reading?

Think you could organise a supporters trip to Barnsley, Team colours compulsory?

[Sir Barry]

Gosh

Barnsley are behind the times. Everyone else has had a swearbox since, um, forever.

Oh, and lots of win for the comments here, you have all won one internets.

[Anonymous Coward]

Try that in East London...

... if you dare:

1) They just ain't got the manpower cos..

2) Swearing has now entirely replaced that difficult to use punctuation, as in: "You fuck doan gi me that shit you ain got f-all balls get to fuck" (and that's just the Doctor)

3) Costs would be too high: issuing every copper with enough translators to cover 100 odd linguistic versions (plus assorted dialects) of "fuck off" would double the national debt

4) No one has 80 quid they'll admit to

[ravenviz]

Surely

Surely just shouting at someome is enough whether it be swearing or not. If I am angry for whatever reason I measure whether to swear or not, usually taking into account who it is and what I think they've done to upset me. If I think they need to be sworn at then I have good reason to do so, and not get some automatic fine. Will I now have to appeal in the courts about why I was angry at someone and for them to defend themselves? Sheesh!

[Intractable Potsherd]

Ahhhh ... you see, you are missing the point.

In this brave new world we have had foisted upon us, we are not allowed to be angry. Anger is always wrong, no matter how justified it might seem.

I wish this was a joke, but it isn't.

[BuckeyeB]

Life Imitates Demolition Man

John Spartan you are fine 5 credits for a violation of the verbal morality statute.

B