I cherish the idea of people behaving nobly. Not me personally, of course, because sacrifice ensues and how much fun is that. It’s not like it’s World War II and sacrifice is compelled by a splendid national purpose reducible to three words: Win the War!
Fast-forward to now and our moral climate of celebrity-induced torpor. Does America still have a Great National Purpose that compels sacrifice? OK, I’ll propose one: Let America be the most civilized nation ever to exist.
Are you up for it? There will be sacrifice. For example, we can give up the coercive fun of bullying in all its forms whether by kids or adults. We can stop shouting our national discourse and abandon the ugly certitude that goes with always being right. (Are you listening Bill O’Reilly and Chris Matthews?)
We can sacrifice lawsuits in disputes you could settle over a cup of coffee.
We can stop mucking up our Constitutional guarantees with the sludge of incivility. What good is free speech when we use it to jabber talking points? Since when did freedom of religion suggest the right to behave like a book-burning jackass or a homicidal maniac?
We can sacrifice the idea that the right to carry a gun includes the right to start a gunfight at one’s personal OK Corral.
Indeed Congress itself can be rendered dysfunctional by mean-spirited debate.
So that’s a proposal for America’s Great National Purpose: to become the most civilized people ever. It means expanding the definition of excellence to include everyday behavior. Refining our capacity to ennoble and inspirit one another. Disagreeing passionately and yet remembering that all our major disagreements have two viable sides.
If we can bring it off, the greatest generation may be us. Sacrifice is involved, but believe me when I say that behaving nobly is better than behaving loutishly. I know; I’ve tried both.
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