They do no work in advancing an argument, and their use in fiction represents a capitulation in the face of the tide of vulgarity that cheapens and defaces the public space.
WSJ: Alexander McCall Smith on Writing Dialogue | Word Craft
2.
If such a policy means not letting even small delinquencies such as spraying graffiti that defaces public property go unpunished, then it has never been adopted, never mind enforced, in France.