Are you already tired of all the bickering going on about politics in our country? And it’s still almost a year until the 2020 national elections!
What can we do in the face of the rancor and bitterness?
Tag: civility
Let’s restore courtesy and civility
Last year, I wrote an “Editor’s View” entitled “Where have courtesy and civility gone?”
I lamented the fact that lack of courtesy seems to be escalating in our country. I mentioned the fact that people rarely opened doors for my mother-in-law who used a walker.
This still seems to happen. There are a few nice people who will hold doors for persons with canes, walkers, or wheelchairs. But many people just ignore these disabled and elderly persons and only pay attention to themselves.
Where have courtesy and civility gone?
In the later years of her life, my mother-in-law used a walker. Of course, it slowed down her pace and also made it difficult for her to open doors unless they had a handicapped door opener.
When I was with her, I could help her navigate doors. Sometimes she got ahead of me, so I wasn’t there when she reached the door.
I was unpleasantly surprised when other people would just walk through the door without offering to help her. She said this was a common occurrence.
Lack of courtesy
This lack of courtesy is something that seems to be escalating in our country. People seem to think only about themselves.
What’s happening to our ‘perfect Union’?
We Americans have always prided ourselves on having a democracy that operates fairly well.
Unlike some other countries, we usually settle our differences nonviolently (the Civil War being one big exception). We’ve relied on the ballot box to vote for our leaders.
Changes in our democracy
But over recent years, it seems as if our peaceful way of governing has given way to nasty bickering and even violence in word and deed.
In year of divisions, Catholics can model civility
Labor Day is past and the fall election season begins in earnest. As in previous years, party leaders and political commentators see Catholics as swing voters. That means people will be paying attention to us. This attention provides an opportunity to explain and witness our values and to express them in ways that elevate, not coarsen, the debate.
But our witness is effective only when we practice what we preach amongst ourselves. The reality is that faithful Catholics are both Democrats and Republicans, liberals and conservatives, partisans and independents. And, even as we discuss our political differences, we ought not to lose sight of our shared values and common humanity that bind us together as persons created in the image of God.
Love of Christ shines through him: Cardinal Dolan offers us insights into why he smiles so much
When I think of Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, I picture him smiling. Of course, Cardinal Dolan can be as serious as any priest, bishop, or cardinal can be, but it’s his smile that most people remember.
Why does he smile so much? Obviously he is a happy person and he loves people. But there’s more to it than that.
My encounters with the new cardinal date back to his time in Milwaukee. I met him soon after he started his ministry as archbishop there at a meeting of the staffs of the three Catholic Herald diocesan newspapers. I noticed right away that the new archbishop’s smile lit up the room.
WCC positions bring a nonpartisan view of hope
For those who engage the policies by which we govern ourselves, the beginning of an odd-numbered year is a time for defining a vision.
Governors set their vision with their state of the state message and their budget address. Legislators do it by their “priority bills.” The Wisconsin Catholic Conference (WCC) does so by sharing its Policy Positions for the new session.
In aftermath of Tucson shooting: We must work for respect for life and civility in public discourse
We’ve all heard the old adage, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” This saying was meant to convey the idea that people cannot really hurt you by what they say, only by what they do physically.
As we reflect this week on the mass shooting in Tucson, Ariz., that killed six people and wounded 14 others, we realize that both parts of that saying are true. Physical violence, of course, does cause harm. But words can also hurt people and perhaps lead to physical violence.
We don’t know the full story behind why the alleged shooter, Jared Lee Loughner, decided to shoot U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords while she was meeting with some of her constituents outside a supermarket in Tucson.
A Christmas gift: civility in public discourse
Anyone familiar with the recent election campaign or with the “reader comments” that accompany editorials and news articles knows that civility is often the first casualty in debates today.
Nearly anyone who makes a public argument finds his intelligence questioned, his motives impugned, or his basic decency assaulted. Some critics will even doubt the patriotism or Americanism of their opponents. Others call their opponents bigots or racists.