What is civility?

Posted with permission of  doorcountydailynews.com

“What is civility? What does it mean to be civil today?  Is civility in decline? How does civility impact our mental health and the quality of our lives? 

I’m psychologist Dr. Dennis White with your Mental Health Minute.  

These are all questions raised by Dr. P.N.Forni in his book Choosing Civility. And they are questions being asked by ordinary citizens, many right here in Door County, as we see what appears to be a rise in rude, uncivil behavior in most areas of public and private life.  

Minister Kirby Anderson writes, “We seem to be living in the midst of an epidemic of rudeness. Articles in the newspaper document the number of incidents of road rage. And if you doubt that, just try to merge onto a busy freeway and see how many drivers honk their horn or try to cut you off.

And that's just the tip of the iceberg. A 1997 American Automobile Association report documents a sharp rise in the use of cars as weapons (people trying to run over other people on purpose). A Colorado funeral director complains about impatient drivers darting in and out of funeral processions. Instead of waiting for the procession to pass, they threaten life and limb while ignoring both law and tradition in their rush to get somewhere.

Rudeness seems to be at an all-time high in airports. There is the story of the man who was angry at missing a flight connection and threw his suitcase at an eight-month pregnant airline employee. 
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Over the next several months, I will be talking about civility, and the work that the Door County Civility Project is doing. You can find more information at their web site www.doorcountycivilityproject.org. But for now, this has been Dr. Dennis White with your mental health minute.

by Dr. Dennis White

Psychologist