Comedy ASBOs?

The BBC website has rounded up reporting of the new rules imposed on people through Anti-Social Behaviour Orders (ASBOs). Individuals face jail if they wear hats, mop the floor or drink alcohol. Others could be imprisoned for karaoke or videoing their neighbours. So far, so hilarious, and worthy of a King of the Hill storyline.

Except the things they face jail for are not illegal in the first place. In the style of the L.A.P.D. gang register, a new form of administrative law enforcement is emerging, where those who offend official standards of good behaviour – rather than actually break the law – can be locked up. Reactionaries often finish listing their dislikes with the phrase 'there ought to be a law against it'; ASBOs mean they don't need such a law to impose their will on others.