Browsing All Posts filed under »Politeness and Civility«

Random Acts of Kindness

May 5, 2020

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I always thought the phrase “random acts of kindness” was basically invented by telejournalists to lift up the spirits of their listeners accustomed to 24 hours of bad news, 7 days a week, 12 months of the year. How much bad, or fake, or depressing news of the affairs of men (and women of course; […]

The “I”s Have It

March 19, 2020

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If you think you’ve heard the expression, “the I’s have it,” you are right, but not using “I.” Rather the traditional expression is “the ayes have it” in referring to a vote where those voting “yes,” say “aye” in the old English. It may be a nautical term, since in the Navy we hardly ever […]

The Dog Park

July 13, 2017

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Everyone is glued to the television, or to your computer, or tablet, or cell phone, or whatever serves to transport you away from the humdrum existence of home. We want breaking news—the latest tweet from the President or perhaps the newest hammer and knife attack somewhere in European metro or underground (what we call subways) […]

Cell Phones are Killing Off Conversation–and Civility

July 13, 2017

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What has happened to civility? By “civility” I mean several things: ‒ politeness; ‒ the ability to listen to a contradictory opinion without knocking someone unconscious with your riot baton because they don’t agree with you; ‒ the simple human activity of entertaining different points of view from your own as possibly being valid; ‒ […]