Politics & Civility

"America, at its best, matches a commitment to principle with a concern for civility." ~ President George W. Bush (2001)

"Empowered by faith, consistently, prayerfully, we need to find our way back to civility." ~ President Barak H. Obama (2010)

Every president wants it, but politics rarely is very civil. You can see it in these Monroe Patch pages where different individuals from each party lay the blame for this, that and the other thing on the other party, often in ways that make you wonder if we both inhabit the same area and want the same things.

There is no shortage of disagreements but it is how we talk to one another, or more accurately past one another, that shows our lack of civility. 

Stephen Carter in his book Civility says that our words and actions are a "signal of respect for our fellow citizens, marking them as full equals, both before the law and before God. Rules of civility are thus also rules of morality; it is morally proper to treat our fellow citizens with respect, and morally improper not to. Our crisis of civility, is part of a larger crisis of morality."

I know that with my own kids, my wife and I often remind them that a respectful tone will help them in life, to not only ask for what they want but also to be seen in a positive light.   I believe we all struggle with this because it is so easy in today’s society to quickly respond to what someone says by posting quickly or tweeting it without having a chance to really reflect on it.

If we really listen to the conversations going on in our country and in our hometown, there is a lack of depth to them and the discourse is all about the sound bite. Civility is a moral imperative, because it is how we treat (love) one another.

“We don’t need to give up our values, water them down, or throw out our convictions to have a civil conversation. It is exactly these beliefs that allow us to engage in real dialogue.”

There is no better time for us to remember to be civil in our conversations and to encourage others to do the same.  I invite you to take the civility pledge in your life (which was part of the  civilityproject.org but has been disolved):

• I will be civil in my public discourse and behavior.
• I will be respectful of others whether or not I agree with them.
• I will stand against incivility when I see it.

As Stephen Carter puts it, “My point is to argue that how we speak is simply one point on a continuum of right and wrong ways to treat one another. And how we treat one another is what civility is about.”