Amid the current madness I recalled a website on civility established in 2007 by a community foundation in southwest Florida.
Why should we behave politely, act respectfully or show good manners?, it asks. Because it it matters, comes the answer from the site called, appropriately, Because It Matters.net
For the citizens of southwest Florida, civility matters because it improves quality of life by increasing civic participation, civil discourse and social capital. The Gulf Coast Community Foundation of Venice, Fla. offers these simple keys:
— Respect others
— Think positively
— Pay attention
— Make a difference
— Speak kindly
— Say thank you
— Accept others
— Rediscover silence
— Listen
— Keep your cool
Because It Matters is an old-fashioned site that many would consider low-tech, simplistic and overly earnest. The ten keys to civil behavior is a code of conduct that might be taught in grade school — something that the politicians and pundits here in Washington might understand.
