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This blog was the first in the nation created by an editorial board to give readers a behind-the-scenes view of the discussion that goes into crafting the newspaper’s daily editorials. It includes updates on the work of the editorial staff and debates on general news issues. We welcome and read all letters from readers. Letters are selected for publication based on their clarity and brevity. They also are chosen to represent a diverse set of views on as many issues as possible. February 2010
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We ran a good op-ed today from Andrea Weinstein and Steve Gutow about a new civility pact that the Jewish Council on Public Affairs is promoting. Both Weinstein and Gutow are Dallas natives who are active JCPA leaders, and their aim is to take this new code of civility and work it into the fabric of schools, worksites and congregations. Along these lines, I was privileged to moderate a panel yesterday at the JCPA annual meeting that Rabbi Gutow appeared on with the Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon, the general secretary of the National Council of Churches. The session was devoted to bridging the divide between the Jewish and Protestant worlds, which have been significant at times. I was struck by both leaders' sincerity and interest in trying to hear each other out on the issue of Israel. Some mainline Protestant churches have taken up the cause of Palestinian Christians more than the cause of Israel, and that has caused some tension. What I liked about Gutow and Kinnamon's dialogue is that they are very candid about each other's point of views. They didn't flinch about their disagreements, which is the only way we ever are going to have a civil dialogue. We have to learn how to acknowledge our differences, see if there are areas where we can come together and keep talking. The worst thing we can do is act as if there are no differences. That only perpetuates the divide, whether within ecclesiastical circles or within political ones. I know that comment sounds idealistic, but what choice do we have? Look at Washington, where listening to each other is a lost art. The same is true in the Mideast, where Israeli/Palestinian leaders can talk past each other. We will get nowhere in either place if we keep talking past each other. I really liked what Gutow said about listening being the key. If you don't listen, you can never have the kind of relationship that is needed between individuals and organizations to deal with a dispute. I also liked the question Gutow raised: Is your table big enough to accommodate people of dissenting views? If not, he suggested, we've stopped seeing the image of God in the other person. Finally, Kinnamon had a great line when I pressed them about how leaders of organizations take the cordiality of their personal relationship and apply it to their larger organization. He said you have to embed that same level of respect within your own organization. And that is not easy. A more civil society won't break out just because two leaders of Jewish and Christian organizations appeared on the same stage. But it sure was an encouraging session. Let me put it this way: It beat the heck out of hearing Nancy Pelosi and John Boehner speak past each other. CommentsE-mail entry: |
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It isn't just the disagreement that is weighing in so heavily, it's the slander, the namecalling and the out and out nastiness that seems to have ballooned along with technological access. While this has always been a part of politics, it has ramped up exponentially with the Internet. Is there any question that the vilification of Sarah Palin has been wrought by Moveon.org and their hired hackers? In previous manifestations would the foibles of a teenaged daughter become political fodder? In a similar manner, without the internet would truthers have had such traction? Would the actions of everyday people change if we had been willing to allow other people their opinions without trying to browbeat them into submission with quotes and links to websites that may or may not have validity? Carry this down to the local level and we have people who think they are entitled to free stuff just for showing up-and this goes all the way from grades in school to paychecks. We have people who drive around in the emotional equivalent of their living rooms complete with every electronic distraction known to man. And the distractions, the bombardment of information is creating a society that seems to ADHD in scope. We either start putting Ritalin in the drinking water or we make the necessary steps to withdraw from constant connection to the outside world.
It is as if we have forgotten not just the humanity in others, but our own humanity. Perhaps Devo was right-we are becoming de-evolved. Already our children are loathe to read and write. I get emails daily that feature text speech as opposed to real language. And as those brainwaves are altered, so too is our behavior. This is a very serious problem and it is going to take more than good manners to solve it.
Well, I predicted this:
Posted by Grumpy Demo @ 3:08 PM Fri, Feb 19, 2010
Looks like we Democrats need another lecture form McKenzie on civility again:
"Dick Armey, the former House majority leader and Republican congressman from suburban Dallas - and moving force in the Tea Party movement - issued a scathing critique this morning of President Barack Obama.
"You're intellectually shallow. You're a romantic. You're self-indulgent. You have no ability," Armey said, calling Obama "the most incompetent president perhaps in our lifetime."
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/politics/state/stories/021810dnpolarmey.12d76879b.html
Ah, yes the "McKenzie civility rule": There's nothing uncivil that the Right does, but we Liberal are always uncivil.
I learned everything I know about civility from Rod (Gays are less than human) Dreher, here's just a few examples for this blog:
Dreher on Nancy Pelosi on January 5, 2006:
"thought she looked asinine up there, frankly. It's a wonder she didn't lay out cookies and milk. . . Then again, Margaret Thatcher is my ideal of feminine leadership, not some ridiculous Bay Area Botox victim."
"I'm wondering if the Obamas are, underneath it all, the kind of educated left-wing miserabilists who really do despise their country." (From Dreher's "Mme. Obama hated America till now?" Tuesday February 19, 2008)
And then there's the DMN regular editorial contributor and Limbaugh employee, Mark Davis:
"Limbaugh fill-in Davis attacks Kennedy grandchild's prayer at funeral mass as "hijacking and politicization""
Here's a nice list of Davis' "civility":
http://mediamatters.org/search/tag/mark_davis
Lastly, nothing is more uncivil that pointing out George W (Jesus is my hero) Bush ordered our troop to torture prisoners, in violation of US, International Law and basic human dignity, oops I gone and become uncivil.
Learned everything I know from the DMN, proudly enabling Right Wing slander since 1963.
I just ran across Mr. McKenzie's 1/1/10 column about demographics, in which he says "...the world's greatest test is getting adherents to the three major Abrahamic faiths - Chrisitianity, Judaism and Islam - living together in relative harmony, even as they try to understand each other." I want to let Mr. McKenzie and his blog readers know that, since 1844, the second most widespread religion in the world - the Baha'i Faith - has been proclaiming the need for the followers of all religions to look at what we have in common and let that be a source of love and unity. We Baha'is are told to associate with and talk to each other: "Consort with the followers of all religions in a spirit of friendliness and fellowship." We are to use "frank and loving consultation" as a way to discuss our problems. Anyone who would like to learn about the Baha'i Faith is welcome to go to www.bahai.net. One of our foundational principles is the right of every individual to independently investigate the truth for himself or herself.
It’s kind of hard to be civil to your opponents when they tell you we don’t have to listen to you. After all we won and are not about to let a crisis go to waste in order to ram our version of big government down your throats.