Regarding this 'Culture of Vitriolic, Damning Rhetoric'

“When you look at unbalanced people, how they respond to the vitriol that comes out of certain mouths about tearing down the government—the anger, the hatred, the bigotry that goes on in this country is getting to be outrageous,” said Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik, an elected Democrat, at a news conference Saturday evening. “And unfortunately, Arizona, I think, has become the capital. We have become the mecca for prejudice and bigotry.”

I always find it fascinating when you get synchronicity, when commonality surfaces, when there's some kind of societal alignment going on. Especially when I find myself sparked to swim around in the churning waters, examine what's roiling about, attempt to draw out what's most discernible...and some things that might not at all be to others, but sure are to me.

I've been asked on occasion how the society I'm yammering-on about wanting to create (one where there's an increased relationship of engagement between residents and their politicians, specifically in local governance) could be created. What has to be done. What behaviours would have to change.

The answers to these questions- Well, I haven't managed to come up with them all yet. But I do know that there's not one thing on its own that would accomplish the paradigm shift, the migration of value system required to see this 'involved' profile of citizenry. I do know that there are many, many pieces to the puzzle.

And I do know what some of the attributes of this new paradigm would be. And they all fall under the banner of 'civility'.

Respect is probably at the core of civility, respect on so many different levels. Respect of self, of family, of neighbours, of neighbourhoods, of community. This alone would mean a ton of simple things. No litter. No dumping of rubbish. No abandonment of properties. A 'helping hand' would be the default gesture, not the exception.

Ah, civility. The stuff that we seem to have lost connection with.

Before I get to a gem I found in Comments section today, I wanted to take a quick look at why it is that civility seems to have been eroded so much over however-many-years-you-wish-to-suggest.

-The materialism that binds us. To me, the desire to acquire sets up a bulwark against seeing outward...which is a foundation of civility.

-The trend of 'entitlement' that blinds us. Best summed-up by 'Me, me, me!'

-The notion of 'progress' being so willfully connected to 'things being different from before'. It's a tough concept for some to envision, that there are elements of 'times gone by' that actually reveal a regression in today's world. I guess it's arrogance, this belief that we live in the greatest possible time humankind's ever found itself in.

-The fact that we live in 'uncertain' times. I came across a quote recently: 'Forgiveness is hiding behind the fear'. If you're fearful, if you're frustrated, if you're angry...how can you be forgiving? How can you be civil?

Here's the post I found. Granted, it's addressing the current situation in the U.S., but I believe there's lots there for all of us to learn from...especially the commenter's final point.

There are a few things we all need to learn:

1. The right wing people are NOT totalitarian OCD control freaks looking to dominate every aspect of our lives.
2. The left wing people are NOT socialist, communist, Marxist, control freaks looking to dominate every aspect of our lives.
3. You can't take back your country when you ALREADY HAVE IT.
4. STOP DEMONIZING YOUR OPPONENTS!!!! I'm tired of hearing my left and right wing friends and family members trying to make it sound like their political opposites are the baby-eating Bishop of Bath and Wells! And yeah, Hitler. Every body equates everyone else to Hitler. I'M SICK OF IT!!!!!! I've actually listened to my liberal friends and they're not actually socialists or communists, and I've listened to my right wing friends and they are not actually trying to dominate every aspect of our religious and personal lives. I can't say the same about these TV pundits, but the real people that I know personally don't fit into these stereotypes (thought they seem to believe what the pundits are saying about the opposition).

If we can just learn to agree to disagree without getting pissed off at each other, then the political climate in this country will vastly improve.