How far does hate go?
Barney Frank, an openly gay senator, is met with gay-hating chants from the Tea Partiers. John Lewis from Georgia is met with the N word, and another representative was spit upon. The discourse on healthcare and politics in general has devolved into hateful name calling and dehumanization.
How far does hate go?
President Obama is featured in a dehumanizing clown face. The taunt rings out, "You lie!" People are yelling down folks at community meetings...
It won't be long before the hate breeds more than violent words. This sort of de-evolution of the ability to communicate with respect is the sort of de-humanizing banter that was the stuff of Civil Rights battles. We can not have civil society if people will not act civil. It takes a great deal of cooperation to have democratic process and to hear one another.
I'm afraid I can't hear much over all the shouting.
You may want to read Scott Peck's A WORLD WAITING TO BE BORN if you have not already read it. It is about the need for civility within a culture.
ReplyDelete