MA Town Weighs Swearing Fines

They aren’t f--king joking! Officials in the Massachusetts town of Middleborough are reportedly so fed up with public swearing that they have brought about a measure to ban such verbal acts in public. Residents were due to vote on the measure Monday night, which would make swearing in public worthy of a $20 fine. The fine, which was proposed by the police chief, is said to be aimed at profanity-laden language used by teens and others in the downtown area and public parks—not in casual conversation. The state of Massachusetts does allow towns to enforce laws that give police power to arrest anyone who “addresses another person with profane or obscene language.” Middleborough has around 20,000 residents.