Walt Whitman (1819-92) is almost universally recognized as America's greatest poet--not least because of his ability to formulate and convey a profound and inspiring view of what it means to…
For 30 years now, extending back to the days when I was a full-time theorist, I have consistently maintained that while some forms of democratic discussion might be better than…
In 1819, author of the Declaration of Independence and third President Thomas Jefferson founded the University of Virginia (UVA). In both its curriculum and layout the new school stood out…
Most people nowadays agree that we're a divided country. But those on both sides of the divide tend to disagree about who's "at fault." In my humble opinion, there's plenty…
Governments and corporations are rushing to protect consumers' online privacy. Just a few examples: just over a year ago, the European Union instituted a comprehensive data protection scheme (the General…
NPR recently ran a series entitled "The Civility Wars." An intriguing story that's part of the series notes that not everyone is in favor of restoring civility because "The calls…
We're often told not to mix politics (or religion) and polite conversation. The advice is often offered as self-evident. Far from it. In fact, the conventional wisdom that politics is a…
EnCiv member organization Interactivity Foundation (IF) has just released a three-part series of podcasts with the title: "Civil War, or Civil Discussion?" Part one of the first episode features…
A recent article in The Washington Times, Victor David Hanson puts the question slightly differently, but no less alarmingly. The article, entitled "Are we on the verge of civil war?" provides…
As I said in my last post, the solution to political polarization is well known: civil discussion. But isn’t polarization already too far advanced? Haven’t too many people already given…
Here’s a surprise: overcoming political polarization is not a mystery; the solution is in fact well understood. That solution? —“Civil discussion,” as we like to call it (or “democratic deliberation,”…
By Hope Garland In the words of the American rock-band REM, “Sometimes everything is wrong” and, in the spirit of civil discussion, sometimes everyone is wrong. While it is never…
In a previous post, I proclaimed that my favorite Founder was Ben Franklin, whose inventiveness, practical wisdom, and skill as diplomat and mediator I especially admire. But I admire many…
Addressing the deep divisions afflicting our nation through productive conversation is at or near the top of EnCiv's priorities. Some people have told us over the past year think that…
It’s become common, even fashionable, to decry the state of civil discourse in the US. While we agree that it’s sunk to abysmal depths, at EnCiv we aspire to more…