Civility: In Politics and Our Social Lives ....

In a word. Yes. We have forgotten how to be civil to people who are different from us or who think differently than they do. Somehow anyone who thinks differently politically has now become "evil", "stupid", or "the enemy". Which is sad and wrong. People have different opinions for different reasons. Neither is right or wrong...why? Because it is an OPINION. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions. We need to stop marginalizing anyone who thinks differently. That makes it easier to treat them badly becuase it makes them "less than human" or less deserving of respect. When in fact we are humans and Americans...so we need to start showing common respect and civility to each other. Side note...I thougt Obama's speech was great. It was just what the country needed.

No, we don't know what civility is anymore and we sure have crossed the line big time. I was raised to believe we should be able to look up to our elected officials, regardless of their party affiliation. That's not to say they're "above us" or "better than us" but that by the very fact of having won the vote OF THE PEOPLE they command respect. Of course we can disagree with them and express our disagreements loudly and and as often as we wish; we can work to get them voted out of office if we so desire. However we should never treat them with anything less than the same respect with which we'd like to be treated. We should NOT call our elected officials or those who support them names or belittle them just because we don't share the same views and opinions. Obviously - or it SHOULD be obvious - we should never say or do anything that could be taken as a call for violence against someone with whom we simply disagree. At the same time, I certainly agree with those who say we shouldn't jump to conclusions and point fingers at those with whom we disagree when something terrible happens. What we should do is open up the lines of communication between the different sides. We should all be able to agree there is a better way to communicate our displeasure with a political than one using violent imagery and rhetoric. There simply should be no place for that kind of vitriol in our politics. Annie