more problems with asbos

Asbos keep getting issued in ever increasing numbers. This is a worry for a couple of practical reasons - because they keep being issued to children, including children and/or people with behavioural disorders or mental health problems, and because if you breach your order, you face a jail sentence, even if the reason it was issued was for a non-criminal offence (such as being autistic and persistently staring over your neighbour's fence). In other words, they have the effect of criminalising people for non-criminal behaviour, and that often includes vulnerable people, who need help and support not punishment under the law.

But even the rationale behind asbos worries me. Hazel Blears is quoted as saying that "no one should have to endure" being on the receiving end of anti-social behaviour. This is obviously true, but the problem is that you can't make laws against every kind of experience that you don't enjoy experiencing. Like laws against "inciting religious hatred," laws against "anti-social behaviour" are inherently heavy handed, because not all unpleasant things should be illegal. It's high time this government started to realise that they're not going to achieve utopia through legislating against inconveniences: anti-social behaviour comes from cultural and social breakdowns which aren't going to be remedied by passing more restrictive laws.