In April 1801, British Vice Admiral Horatio Lord Nelson fought a terrible battle with the Danish Navy and Army at Copenhagen. Two thousand Danish and English sailors died. Over a dozen ships were destroyed or captured. After the battle, before the dead had even been buried, Lord Nelson called for a truce and met with the Danish Crown Prince and head of government to discuss where the two sides were going to go next. One can only imagine how tense that meeting was, the strong feelings on each side, yet it was conducted with a civility that did credit to Nelson and the prince, and which left room for reconciliation between England and Denmark after the guns were silenced. The same sense of civil intercourse guided Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee when they met at Appomattox Court House to conclude terms for the surrender of the Confederate Army. Civility was good policy.
Today, incivility seems to be growing in our public and private discourse like some sort of social disease. The most graphic example of this has been the viciousness of the presidential election campaign; a nastiness that threatens to leave both major political parties so at odds that the chances of future cooperation will be impaired; all to the country’s detriment. Incivility is bad policy.
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