A Model of Civility

I have read, with interest, accounts of a recent NFL football game in Dallas where the former president of the United States and a talk show host sat with one another, visited and genuinely enjoyed one another’s company.

And yet, he is a conservative……she is a liberal. How could that possibly be? I mean, how can polar political opposites attract?

You are probably aware of the story. Ellen DeGeneres has been bombarded with what Associated Press described as a “Twitter mob” of naysayers after she shared the company of George W. Bush. The backlash continued when DeGeneres described Bush and his wife as “friends.”

Have we really arrived where people of differing political opinions can’t put away the partisan divide long enough to enjoy each other’s company? DeGeneres has stood by her decision to describe the Bush’s as friends….saying there was mutual respect.

Even singer Elton John weighed in….saying he supports DeGeneres and deplores the current climate which makes such interactions fodder for social media assault. He credits Bush with a 2003 plan which saved 17-million lives, proving $83 billion dollars to combat AIDS.

This starts with you. Yes, you. Start by being civil to someone who doesn’t share your world view. There are other things to talk about. There are ways to co-exist…in a polarized society.

Ellen DeGeneres and W taught us a lesson last week.

Political disagreement should never get in the way of common civility.