The One Important Fact Every Media Report Left Out About That 'Town That Banned Swearing'

A week or so ago, everyone was having lots of Footloose-joke fun at the expense of Canada’s “The Town That Dreaded Curse Words”:

Taber, Alberta — population around 8,000 — has not only banned swearing, but “yelling and screaming” are now also against the law in the small community.

Serious questions came up, too, like whether the bylaw violated (admittedly comical) Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

But what nobody dared to report, until Maclean’s did just now, was just who all these anti-social miscreants were, the ones that necessitated the passing of such a wacky-sounding law in the first place.

Turns out, they’re young Mennonites.

Huh? That sounds like a bigger joke than the original story, right?

(“What kind of Buddhism is this, Otto?“)

But even Maclean’s buries the (other) lede until mid-way through their piece:

These troublemakers aren’t just Mennonites.

They’re Mexican Mennonites.

Who’ve brought with them their culture’s well-documented indifference to such uptight Anglo-Saxon values as prioritizing higher education; cooperating with one’s neighbors to maintain a safe, clean, quiet, civilized public square; and interacting with (surprisingly non-bribable!) authorities in a respectful, law-abiding fashion.

Victor Davis Hanson, please pick up the (off-) white courtesy phone.

And press #2 for Spanish.