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The Social Severity Act is a law demanding modesty and austerity in all public areas, including public gatherings, committee, commerce meetings, military parades & marches, and all official State and Party celebrations.

The Act is specifically enforced during Designated Working Hours (DWH), but extends to cover all hours in public areas. The Act does not extend explicitly to within a Citizen's home, but behaviour contrary to the spirit of the Social Severity Act could be regarded as subversive, and lead to the possibility of arrest by the OSS or the Citizens New Model Militia.

The Act was introduced by the glorious leaders of the Party, partly brought about by the puritanical enthusiasm of the Party, and partly by the intolerable decadence that permeated society, with far too many workers spending their days and nights drunk or drinking, leading to a lowering of moral and social standards, with productivity in many Designated Labour Zones falling to zero. The Act swiftly ended such abuse of freedom, as usual caused by a small group of Citizens out of line with the majority of loyal and dedicated Citizens.

Amongst the many prohibitions the Act introduces, the core principle is to reduce drunkenness during work times, and cut down on the amount of projectile vomiting over expensive machinery that was costing a fortune in labour hours to clean and repair.

The final act of impurity and decadence that demanded the introduction of the Act, was when every single member of Fourth Artillery & Cannonfodder Battalion, a reserve unit of the Citizens New Model Militia, failed to turn up for weekly drill practice as they had all been out for a very long session in the Dog & Biscuit public house the night before.

Members of this unit subsequently served one month undergoing Corrective Therapy under the direction of the OSS, before being despatched on a map-making exercise in the Winterland. The Militia report full attendance figures since the introduction of the Social Severity Act as the Fourth Artillery & Cannonfodder Battalion are presently two years overdue and are listed as MIA (Missing in Action).

Eye Witness:The Glorious History of the State in Black & White
Read Old Mrs McNally's account of the times before and after the Social Severity Act:

"I remembers the days before the Social Severity Act. Ah, good times. In those days I could sit outside the public houses and laugh out aloud as I watched the New Model Militia beat seven colours of crap out of some poor unfortunate idiot that had wandered too close to the flame of Purity.

It's all so different now. It's strictly against the Common Law to have a good time on the city streets. Now I has to turn away in case a grin cracks across my beaten old face, or a chuckle tries to raise its troublesome head and escape my vile, toothless mouth.

That damn Act took all the fun out of life. The austerity of the Party of Purityranny is absolute. The Party are very serious about seriousness.

I can't even enquire as to the crime perpetrated by the dissident now, even as they is getting arrested. I remembers one particular occasion. I was younger then, only in me sixties, and I had watched as some young fool had the foolhardiness to stroll up to a wandering Militia patrol as they were giving a distributor of seditious pamphlets a very useful lesson in how to defend yourself against ten large men armed with big sticks, and asking that very question.

Well, the Militia sergeant co-ordinating the training exercise was reading through the blasphemous green leaflets and shaking his head in disgust. He stopped and turned, stared at the poor fool for a couple of seconds, and then smiled a very nasty smile, all teeth and no humour. I remembers what he said;

'For interfering in the Purity of the Party's work by asking a very stupid question, without properly prepared documentation, the authority to do so, and without even consulting your local subcommittee.'

I never did find out what eventually happened to that questioning fool. I heard something about him receiving some tips on how to crawl out of a ring of kicking boots, on accounts of a stamp on his ID papers being slightly off centre, but I 'ain't too sure.

The last I saw of him was his tooth, as it landed next to me feet.

Which was quite lucky really. I got a hundred State Promissory Notes for the gold filling."

Mrs McNally's name has been added to the OSS arrest sheet and is presently being hunted.

Purityranny is a way of life.

Failure to report a crime, allowing a crime to take place, or being victim of a crime through carelessness or incompetence, constitutes committing the crime.

The Party is watching. The Party is listening. The Party knows all.