Comedians everywhere are very lucky to be performing at the time that we are.  We can step on stage any night of the week and say whatever we want and not be arrested, fined, or otherwise charged for obscenity or indecency. It was trailblazers like Lenny Bruce and George Carlin (among many others) that led the way for my profession to be free of fear when performing.

This luxury is not limited to comedians. Every North American (and, yes, many other places in the world as well… but not all of them) has the right to speak as they see fit.  I cannot count the number of people that have died to ensure us this freedom, but it is NOT something to be taken lightly.  This is a right guaranteed in Canada by The Charter of Rights and Freedoms as follows:

Everyone has the following fundamental freedoms:

(a) freedom of conscience and religion;

(b) freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of the press and other media of communication;

(c) freedom of peaceful assembly; and

(d) freedom of association.

Source: http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/charter/1.html#anchorbo-ga:l_I-gb:s_2

It is the word “expression” in point (b) that is important for this post.  That means, you guessed it, freedom of speech.  There is one exception to this freedom, and that pertains to speech that is considered to be “hate propaganda” (more information by clicking here).  I understand, and acknowledge that limitation, but it does not apply to what has motivated me to write this.

This is what has motivated today’s post:  A new bylaw in Sylvan Lake, Alberta, that gives peace officers the ability to fine people for swearing in public. Without doubt (and regardless of their motivation for passing such a law – which I’ll discuss in a moment) this is an infringement on the freedoms of every Canadian citizen as guaranteed through The Charter.  This bylaw is an insult to the sacrifices made by countless millions.

Yes, this bylaw also creates new fines for activities such as vandalism – which is all well and good.  That is one thing that laws are supposed to do: protect property (public and private).  I would have no problem with this law had it not included the elements that make swearing “fineable”.

Now it seems as though common sense is trying to prevail as stated by one of the Sylvan Lake City Council members, Richard Backs:

“Obviously we’re not talking about some guy who says oh s***, oh eff, or whatever,”

“We’re talking about somebody who gets really quite loud and boisterous and just point-blank refuses to be quiet — if we’re dealing with someone who is obviously being consistent and obnoxious.”

Source: The Edmonton Sun.  Article: Sylvan Lake to pass law against profanity.  Written by Dave Dormer.  Published on June 7, 2009.

The transition in these few sentences is telling.  Mr. Backs quickly changes the issue from cursing into a matter of “loud and boisterous”.  If it is loud and boisterous behaviour that they are trying to eliminate then there are already laws in place to do so. Fines for disturbing the peace or public drunkenness already exist.  This $150 fine for cursing does not curtail loudness… it curtails freedom of expression.

His use of the word “obviously” also troubles me.  Is this (or his) interpretation of the law “obvious” to those enforcing it?  If it is obvious then why mention cursing at all (especially when loudness seems to be the main issue)?  This wide breadth of interpretation should be of a major concern.  Inaccurate laws create problems later when they are misinterpreted or abused.

It appears as though the intent of the law is to create a more affable environment for vacationers and the argument could be made that cursing in public hurts this environment.  The rebuttal to this argument is simple: too bad.  You DON’T have the right not to be offended.  In fact, you’re likely going to be offended by something or someone everyday.  You DO have the right to freedom of expression.  You DO have the right to leave when being offended.  Exercise the rights that you DO have, and let me, your neighbour, and that f-bomb-droppin’ punk in Sylvan Lake do the same thing.  Our freedom of expression is more important than your social comfort while wake-boarding.

My friends have questioned why I have attacked this topic with such gusto.  They lament that, “it’s just Sylvan Lake.”  While this individual bylaw is a mere pebble in the landscape of our society I urge you all to remember that societies (like people) trip over pebbles, not mountains. The rights of people are not always taken away with one fell swoop… but sometimes by the culmination of “acceptable” changes over a long period of time.  So while, yes, Sylvan Lake is a mere pebble, this particular topic warrants a mountain of our attention.

Saturday night was the closing night gala of Tuesdays With Morrie and since then I haven’t been quite sure what to do with myself.  Yes: I get back to being a magician, comedian, and speaker, this weekend… but the last couple of weeks have been so dominated with the play that there are now lots of hours in a day.

Several friends have been asking, “Are you sad it’s over?” And, yes, I am.  There is nothing quite like working with other performers and creating something special to share with an audience.  So much of the performing that I normally do is solo work.  I write by myself, I rehearse by myself, and perform on stage by myself (even when there are other acts on the show).  The opportunity to “play” with like-minded (and ridiculously talented) people is a rarity that I will surely miss (and already do).

Fortunately, the memories of the experience will last a very long time… and the skills that I learned and developed will last even longer.  Speaking of memories (how’s that for a segue?), there is now an online scrapbook of the show available with pictures, newspaper clippings, and some other “souvenirs” of the event.  You can see everything that is online by clicking here.

I look forward to my next venture into acting (whenever the opportunity arises) and am using these few days off to switch gears back to my work as a solo performer.

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Oh, and I would like to point out that I achieved my goal of making this week’s blog post “on time”.

In the past when a blog post was delayed (from posting on Tuesdays) for some reason I would make an apology… that time is past!  It is my blog – it’s my decision.  (It’s not like anyone has ever complained about the delay.)

The reason for the “two days late” post today is the run of Tuesdays With Morrie.  We opened on Sunday night to a sell-out crowd and have been performing nightly ever since – with no break until after Saturday.

I must confess that I am enjoying the process of going to the theatre nightly.  It is a very different atmosphere than the normal venues that I appear in and it is a wonderful experience and a great change of pace.  That said, I did decide to take off to the mountains yesterday for a coffee, some lunch, time with great friends, and a short hike.  It refreshed me and I’m ready to go for our final three shows this week.

If you haven’t made it the play yet, tickets are still available tonight through to (and including) Saturday.  (www.CalgaryTickets.com)

Next week’s blog post might actually be “on time” – but no promises.

We’re now less than a week away from the opening night of Tuesdays With Morrie.  Rehearsal yesterday was smashing and we’ve got just a few left to put the finished touches on the show.  There are still tickets available online here:

www.CalgaryTickets.com
(there are no service fees)

It has been an absolute pleasure working with such amazing and talented people for this show including my co-star Richard Michelle-Pentelbury and our director Christopher Hunt.

A big thanks also goes out to my friend Andrew Delong for stepping up and stage managing the show.  He had a lot to cover in the last few weeks here and he has done a marvelous job.

And, of course, none of this would be possible without the generosity of M&M Meat Shops – providing the sponsorship necessary to make this show happen and ensure that we raise the most money possible for The ALS Society of Alberta.

I do hope that if you are in Calgary you’ll be able to see the show one night from June 7 to 13 (that’s this Sunday to Saturday).  There’s a Facebook event page also created, click here to view it.  And tickets are all sold through this site.