From June Beslièvre.
WHAT irony. Two reports in the JEP of 1 April – and neither of them April fool’s jokes.
Page 6: ‘Le Sueur supports his Health Minister’. The man, remember, who used foul language in a States session.
Page 7: ‘Threat of jail’ – part of a headline giving the story of a father being fined for his daughter’s bad behaviour – a 14-year-old girl who had admitted swearing at a police officer during arrests of disorderly youths.
Of particular note was the statement: ‘The teenage girl was charged under the new disorderly conduct law which came into force in 2008.’ Something I – and I’m sure others – never knew existed.
The law covers ‘engaging in disorderly behaviour within the hearing and sight of other persons who were likely to be caused alarm or distress by the words and behaviour’.
Why then has our Chief Minister supported Senator Perchard? Why hasn’t he been given a hefty fine for his use of foul language?
There is a lot of talk these days about the amount of anger and aggression being shown – and not only by teenagers. Has anyone thought that a lot of this came about since the use of the F-word.
This is invariably directed at someone else, like ‘F off’ or ‘F you’, which is immediately aggressive. I have never been able to understand why educated people cannot say a sentence without this being used, in many cases quite superfluously.
Adults should be leading by example and not showing young people that this is part of daily life, whereby they can say and do as they please. It’s time these people cleaned up their act.
What they say in their own homes should not be brought into the workplace or on the street ‘within the hearing and sight of other persons who are likely to be caused alarm or distress by their words and behaviour’.
Genée Cottage,
Rue de la Hauteur,
St Lawrence.
