Civility

Why is that you most likely don’t understand what civility is? It’s the commonplace rudeness we have vomited on us each day. Continuing our day not seeing the colourful peas and carrots on our person, the sweet and sour scent we’ve acquired. Oh, and that little bit of rudeness we do ourselves, sweet angelic us. The indifferent clerk that continues the personal phone call while we wait as priority two. The row of inside seats on the bus taken, the loud cell phone conversation of what he said and how you felt and the “I’m just two bus stops away from home honey.” Not to mention your sharing of the “up in the air” health risks you chose, which will one day to be understood as cigarette-company-like-technology it is. (Siskel; one thumb down and out). It’s the “good-natured” gossip that destroys innocent lives, the cyber bullying that makes suicides. The ignorance on the dynamic that is Cause and Effect. The scapegoating of the poor to deflect one’s lack of self development and personal responsibility. Also to avoid addressing the masterful corruption; that lovely invisible circus that goes on above our heads. It’s the ignoring of phone calls placed in good will and e-mails falling on deaf hands. It’s the virulent virus that’s out there now spreading: the basic lack of concern for another’s welfare, indeed the destruction of it. Maybe one day we could address poor democracy itself. It starts with the individual people. We could be the change we want to see. We could start today. —Miss Understood

This article appears in Apr 7-13, 2011.