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This is a bar, no profanities please
While the world is banning smoking in bars, restaurants are banning children, the city of St. Charles in St. Louis is planning to ban swearing, table-dancing, Although I appreciate its efforts to keep the pub environment as "clean" and orderly as possible, how do you stop people from swearing? Will they put a sign outside? Will they have undercover spies walking around eavesdropping on conversations and snitching about who they heard swearing? How bad must things get in this place to have to impose such a "Hitler" law? Aren't they stepping on the basic civil-right of being able to say what you want?
The logic of some bans are just beyond me. I remember in Mumbai a few years ago, when an influential politician banned any nightclub to be open after 11pm! As a result, many nightclubs had secret back doors and as long as they weren't too loud, they got away with being open until the wee-hours of the morning.
Although unfortunate for the respective cities, it's good to know that these sort of absurd bans will never see the light of day outside a very limited area.
Filed under: North America, United States, News
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Eva Jan 11th 2008 8:58AM
"...planning to ban swearing, table-dancing, drinking, or profane music in bars."
Swearing I can live without - I am more concerned about the ban on drinking!
"How bad must things get in this place to have to impose such a "Hitler" law?"
I'm not trying to be the "PC" police but I find this comparison really inappropriate... unless people caught swearing are going to be killed?
"Aren't they stepping on the basic civil-right of being able to say what you want?"
As I understand it, in the US anyway, rights like freedom of speech lose some of their impact when you choose to enter a privately-owned establishment. I believe the owners can impose more or less whatever rules they like, and the idea is that enough people don't like it, the bar will go out of business. (Vague answer - I'm no law expert!)
But there have always been limits on freedom of speech - hate laws for example (speaking of Hitler... the laws about freedom of speech make a big exception for him in places like Germany and Austria), jokes about bombs on planes, blasphemy laws in some parts of the world... and so on.
I've never heard of a ban on profanity (in modern times anyway) before though! My grandmother would be thrilled... :P
B Jan 11th 2008 9:17AM
Just to clarify - this has not been passed yet, and it was drinking "CONTESTS", not drinking.
Jessie Jan 11th 2008 9:19AM
I think that a bar will no longer be called a bar if there is no drinking, no dancing, no profanity, it will be called a church. So why go there is there is no fun at all. I don't think it will stay in business very long, because people come to bars, lounges, nightclubs to let loose and have fun. Drink, dance, act crazy and swear some if they want. As long as they are not hurting anyone and just having fun, that is the whole purpose of going to a bar, nightclub or lounge. Just go to a church and you will fit right in and maybe there you will even be allowed to think you own thoughts, because in a church you have to talk softly and low, walk quietly, don't disturb others and just sit or kneel. Sounds like fun huh. Goodbye to that bar, I am sure it will go out of business really fast. This is one way to drive away the customers. Jessie
Nick Hawkins Jan 11th 2008 9:58AM
You probably meant to use the word "Draconian", since it would fit in better. Using Hitler - not so much of a good idea.
And it's a private establishment, and as such, they can do whatever they please unless they're violating the law.
Tyler Jan 12th 2008 7:14AM
see #12 here:
http://www.gadling.com/2007/12/18/this-is-america-when-ordering-speak-english/#comments
KC Jan 14th 2008 2:37PM
OK, let's start out by saying I'm not 24 anymore, BUT, my wife and I still like to go to a bar for a few beers, some wings or to watch a game. It bothers me when the person sitting right next to my wife can't form a single sentence without at least one if not a string of cuss words in it. I'm not shy about asking them to please stop. One person even said "Oh, are you f***ing offended, I'm so f***ing sorry!", and had no idea what she just said. That's the other thing, the women are as bad as the men. Which is, in my humble opinion, one of the major reasons it has gotten so bad, the women/girls either don't care their male friends cuss or are as bad as they are. When I was dating, remember not 24 anymore, if I said f**k every other word I would never have gotten a second date. I think we have become lazy in our language which makes it easier to cuss than to have a well rounded vocabulary. Back to the proposed law. It's a foolish attempt to regulate offensive but not illegal behavior. Find a better bar.