Civil discussion—discussion that is truly respectful, constructive and open and fair to all views makes us wiser in multiple ways. The first is by helping us understand the world better. …
https://youtu.be/VUfnVJuMQCw In this minute long video I describe why I'm a EnCiv team member, which comes down to this: I've seen discussion's power in the classroom, at work, in…
The last Frequently Voiced Objection to participating in civil discussion is not so much mistaken or misguided but limited. Photo by ming1967 Political discussions come in a lot of “flavors.”…
Every civics student can tell you that democracy means “rule by the people”. But who hasn’t doubted whether that leaves any role for us as individuals? I’ve never understood why…
This objection to civil discussion was first put in written form by Aristotle some 2400 years ago, who said: “Politics requires leisure.” I’ve really never been that aware of what’s…
In my work for Interactivity Foundation (IF) over the past 16-plus years, I've often heard seniors say something like this: Photo by rakef I used to discuss politics quite often…
Yet another Frequently Voiced Objection that leads people to check out of civil discussion is that politics is simply too daunting: My problem with getting involved in a serious political…
Civility is not an all or nothing thing; it is more like an ascent involving a set of interactive and increasingly demanding activities and skills. Civil discussion gives us a…
Another short video in which I explain why Franklin--not Washington, Jefferson, or Madison--is my favorite Founder. Franklin--a strong believer in discussion--remains with us as a practical guide and inspiration.
Incivility doesn’t cure itself. Indeed, there’s good reason to think that it will only get worse if we do nothing to combat it. But what can we do about it? …
If incivility harms us in so many ways, both as individual citizens and as a society, why does it seem to have reached epidemic proportions? I think the answer has…
Comparing incivility to disease helps bring home some of the ways its negative effects on individuals and society interact. Incivility presents itself “clinically” as disrespect and discrimination, on one hand,…
Incivility doesn’t just harm us as individual citizens; it harms us as a society, too—in at least three ways. First, by making it difficult—if not impossible—to engage in reasoned exchanges,…
As long as a discussion is respectful, constructive, open, and fair, we think it qualifies as “civil”—and worth having. At the same time, keep in mind that there are different…
Our website’s home page proclaims that EnCiv is all about “civil discussion for a better democracy.” Just what do we mean by that? How, specifically, does civil discussion improve democracy?…