PM Forni Chat with Washington Post

The WaPo rag had an online chat with PM Forni on Friday. Here's some of the lowlites:

Arlington, Va.: Is there really data that says we're less civil today than we used to be or is this just another "trend" built on anecdotes that the press loves to play up? If there really is evidence, what are the causes?

P.M. Forni: There is plenty of evidence that we are dealing with plenty of rudeness. Less civil than we used to be? Difficult to say for certain. Causes: anonimity, stress, lack of time, lack of restraint.

Way to answer the first question.

Here's a good one:

spot the err, OR: Dear Dan and P.M., I am extremely polite to everyone all the time. Why is everyone else so rude? I just can't understand why others are not as polite as I.

P.M. Forni: They may have not been trained in good manners. They may have less self-control than you do. They may be reacting to stress. They may shifting the burden of their insecurity upon you in the form of rudeness.

Then the real expert - the WaPo staff writer - steps in the talk about the real point of the question:

Dan Zak: Is this a trick question? Looking at life with an "I'm better than everyone" attitude ain't a good starting point. I'm no expert, but I think civility and politeness can't be preceded by haughtiness.

And that's exactly why I'm against this whole concept. The guy who is covering the concept knows it better than the guy who wrote the book.

People Choosing Civility? I Call Bullshit.

This one comes from the Washington Post on April 25. Writer Mary Otto seems to be thinking that this is catching on here.

There are 40,000 "Choose Civility" magnets around suburban Howard County, Md., and more on the way. Some adorn cars; others sit on office desks as reminders.

Yeah, minivans and Priuses. But I do not see many on SUVs. That's because SUVs scream hostility with their gas guzzling, awesome V8s that could make a hybrid into a metal heap. I am so glad I drive a SUV.

I digress, though. Having a magnet != choosing civility. It means having a magnet.

Later in the article, Otto speaks with Dr. Forni, who got us into this mess in the first place. He recalls the moment he decided to write his very obvious book.

He remembers the moment clearly, although it was more than a decade ago. He was giving a lecture on "The Divine Comedy" at the Baltimore campus, and looked out over the earnest young faces.

"I would like very much that they know everything about Dante," he thought. But more urgently, "I wanted them to be kind human beings."

This seems like a lateral career move for Forni. He was lecturing on hell and realized that no one was listening. So he decided to write a book that the county adopted which attempts to alleviate hell. Subsequently, Howard County library decides to adopt the book and alleviated hell with car magnets. Wait? Not yet? Oh.