Our society has a lack of a most basic resource: civility. It is apparent almost everywhere. Even here on DKos, I see people of somewhat similar minds unable to disagree without profanity-laden verbal aggression. It is disheartening, to say the least.
Please, understand, it is not the profanity that I take issue with, but rather the utter lack of civility. The inability to disagree without the tenor of the conversation rising to a level of animus and hostitility that is unproductive, uncomfortable to those witnessing it, and unhealthy for our society generally.
Kossacks (yes, I am stereotyping a bit here,) as a group tend to be highly literate and intelligent. Thus, it is all the more disconcerting to witness those lapses from reasoned and rational debate as they devolve into the "fuck you-fuck you too-fuck you right back" melees.
I see an increasing lack of civility in discourse in our society, politically and in general. It concerns me, frankly. Civility is more than a mere nod to polite manners. In some aspects, civility is a binding agent that prevents our rawest emotions from taking over, thereby leaching away our ability to reason and deal with conflict in a civilized fashion. As our headlines tout increasing events of violence and hate, I cannot help but consider that our declining civility plays a part in this devolution.
It is the human being's ability to communicate that sets him/her apart from other species. Words are more than mere noise or raw emotion. Words are powerful. If you doubt this, look no further than Rush Limbaugh for confirmation. While his thinking process is flawed, an understatement to be sure, he understands the power of words and wields it as a force. Limbaugh verbally contorts and spews, yet he also sculpts and molds; thereby manipulating the minds and emotions of his listeners.
Yes, indeed, words are powerful. For example, the vapid Ms. Palin, while laughably lacking in substance, managed to sway a fair-sized segment of the population based upon a handful of speeches, relying on key-phrases designed to incite. Honestly, the woman had no other intellectual resources; she relied upon words calculated to evoke anger and hatred. Her choice of words was particularly devisive and destructive, laced with figurative bombshells such as "pals around with terrorists," yet effective, despite the often apparent lack of coherent thought process.
As a more positive and hopeful example, think back to some of the speeches of our President, during the campaign and after taking office. One speech in particular was so moving, it became the basis for a widely watched video. Remember how your heart swelled with hope? President Obama takes powerful words and uses them to address our most troubling issues, like race. He used the power of carefully crafted words to bring together millions of Americans in the debris-strewn aftermath of the Bush administration. While it is true that much difficult work remains to be done, let us not lose sight of what was accomplished in the bringing together of so many people to open a door and step through it towards enormous societal change. The key to that action was the productive words of a rational and reasonable man, an effective communicator.
However, some individuals offer comments that are nothing more than a purely personal attack and subsequently offer the rationale that the use of such harsh terms was vital to express their strong emotions over the matter at hand. While in some weak sense that may serve as a shallow justification for an individual with limited reasoning ability and an even more limited vocabulary, it is mere pretense in the case of a literate and learned speaker. The use of words is an artform that encompasses subtlety and nuance, as well as an ability to exude passion and commitment, merely with the proper crafting of the statement. The end result is unique, precise, and leaves no room for doubt as to the speaker's feelings, when the medium is employed by a speaker with a reasonable vocabulary who pauses to consider exactly what message they seek to impart, before they speak. No aggressive, profanity-laden, personal attacks are necessary, although for some speakers they may provide a momentary release of interior frustration and rage.
The old adage "sticks and stones" was an illusion. Words CAN hurt us. Inappropriately used words are a powerful weapon that can cause pain to their intended victim. We've all seen the headlines of young people bullied to suicide, words of hate being screamed until a mob mentality takes over and reason flees the listeners, and acts of obscene violence that evidence tends to support arose as a by-product of hate speech. Rather than merely decrying these events, do we not have a duty to set the standard, the model for true communication, and employ our responsibility not to fall into the same conduct of irresponsible speech that we realize contributes to these hideous acts?
This nation has been blessed with the First Amendment. However, with powerful rights there is a burden of great responsibility. Each of us has the freedom to speak our thoughts, opinions, and feelings. Yet each of us in turn has the somber responsibility to consider the possible effects of those words, to measure our words and speak them in a responsible fashion. That does not inhibit our right to express our views, it merely infers that we frame them in a reasoned manner. Unless we take this responsible highroad, it is a measure of hypocrisy to chastize our opponents when they fail to do so and then engage in apparent revulsion and shock when inevitably some lesser mind acts upon those irresponsible words.
I have read statements on this site, heard pundits and officials refer to the matter, and noted the opinions and input of learned individuals so I realize I am not alone in my thinking. I have noted the efforts of certain FP contributors towards reducing verbal aggression on this site, and the engagement of the community in crafting rules to that end. While I find it sad that such efforts are necessary, I applaud the desire to achieve a better goal and find it heartening that improved discourse is being sought.
I do not propose we silence our dissent, nor do I suggest that we withhold our opinions or avoid controversial subject matter. I simply implore that we apply our reason to our argumentation. I request that we do not lose sight of the power of words, either as a constructive or destructive force and, therefore, that we choose our words with reason and responsibility. I remind us all of what is so easily forgotten in the heat of the moment: that words can hurt and harm or build bridges to foster understanding, the choice is ours.
I simply ask that we think before we speak.