Civility is all the rage in Washington. At least, for now. Not surprisingly, the voices speaking most about civility equate it with a failed centrism. Apparently, being civil while sticking to your guns is completely impossible. Somewhere along the line, "civility" and "compromise" became synonymous. I guess because it's completely impossible to disagree respectfully. Frankly, I don't see Washington suddenly catching the "middle-of-the-road" bug. Further, I don't think it should. Democracy is competitive by design and for a purpose.But will a more respectful tone in Washington and in the media really change anything? Sure, you could argue that the right's Second Amendment fetish (along with their misinterpretation of that amendment) makes for some pretty scary talk of "Second Amendment remedies" and "ballot or bullet" signs, but the fact remains that the people with the guns and the signs are angry -- in many cases panic-stricken -- about things that just aren't happening. There are no "death panels," Socialism isn't the same thing as Communism or Fascism, Barack Obama isn't a foreigner bent on destroying America, all Muslims aren't terrorists, people's taxes have gone down, and George W. Bush is responsible for a lion's share of the deficit. Without scarecrows to be afraid of, no one would be freaked out to the point that they begin to babble about a second revolution.
This isn't to say that a little more respect wouldn't be nice in political rhetoric, it just wouldn't accomplish much. What America needs is a push toward truth in political rhetoric and, sadly, no one seems to be talking about that. If there were truth in politics, not only wouldn't we have to worry about some 'bagger practicing his Second Amendment remedies against elected officials, but there probably wouldn't even be a Tea Party to begin with. It's a "movement" funded by billionaires and Washington insiders, driven by propaganda that convinces people to be afraid of non-existent plots. Without the lies, there would be no fear. And without the fear, there would be no danger...[CLICK TO READ FULL POST]
