by jpitney | Dec 25, 2023 | Civility, Religion
E.J. Dionne at WP: Okay, maybe I’m getting soupy and sentimental at Christmastime. (It’s a weakness I have.) I’d agree we cannot wish away the deep and fundamental conflicts of this moment or the need to battle for democratic values. But if we can’t ponder a different...
by jpitney | Dec 24, 2023 | Civility, Debate, Deliberation
Arthur Brooks interview at Politico: It’s statistically impossible that I’m right on everything that I think. I’m wrong on a bunch of stuff and the only way I’m going to figure that out is by surrounding myself with and having loving conversations where I listen to...
by jpitney | Dec 21, 2023 | Civic Education, Civility, Deliberation
Dan Balz at WP: Longwood University, a public institution, is located in Farmville [VA]. Its leaders have instituted a curriculum called Civitae that encourages active citizenship and perhaps over time a reduction in the country’s tensions and divisions. “We are...
by jpitney | Dec 5, 2023 | Civility, State Government
Schreckhise, W., Pierce, J., Benjamin, F., Lovrich, N., & Button, E. (2023). Legislative Civility, Gridlock, Polarization, and Productivity. State Politics & Policy Quarterly, 1-22. doi:10.1017/spq.2023.23 To what extent are more civil legislatures able to...
by jpitney | Dec 2, 2023 | Civility, Judiciary, Supreme Court
Evan Thomas at WP: O’Connor, who cast the decisive vote in 330 cases over 24-plus years on the court and wrote the controlling opinions on major social issues such as abortion and affirmative action, understood that power and influence should be wielded with good...
by jpitney | Nov 29, 2023 | Civility, Congress, House of Representatives
Donald Wolfensberger at The Hill: While much is made of the “assaults and affrays” that occurred in Congress during the run-up to the Civil War, the precedents are filled with other incidents that took place during other periods in our history. Most of these are...
