Wed Apr 9, 5:22 AM ET
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A raised eyebrow, loud guffaw, smirk or other facial expressions could all be banned in future political debate under new rules proposed for the city council in Palo Alto, California.
In a bid to improve civility in the town's public discourse, a committee on the city council has spent hours debating guidelines for its own behaviour.
"Do not use body language or other nonverbal methods of expression, disagreement or disgust," a new list of proposed conduct rules reads.
Another rule calls for council members to address each other with titles followed by last names, a formality not always practised in laid-back California.
"I don't want to muzzle my colleagues," councilwoman Judy Kleinberg, who headed the committee that drafted the rules, told the San Jose Mercury News. But, she added: "I don't think the people sitting around the cabinet with the president roll their eyes."
:angry:
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A raised eyebrow, loud guffaw, smirk or other facial expressions could all be banned in future political debate under new rules proposed for the city council in Palo Alto, California.
In a bid to improve civility in the town's public discourse, a committee on the city council has spent hours debating guidelines for its own behaviour.
"Do not use body language or other nonverbal methods of expression, disagreement or disgust," a new list of proposed conduct rules reads.
Another rule calls for council members to address each other with titles followed by last names, a formality not always practised in laid-back California.
"I don't want to muzzle my colleagues," councilwoman Judy Kleinberg, who headed the committee that drafted the rules, told the San Jose Mercury News. But, she added: "I don't think the people sitting around the cabinet with the president roll their eyes."
:angry:
