[Vision2020] Fw: KINDNESS COUNTS

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From: "Crapo News Release \(Crapo\)" newsclips at crapo.senate.gov
Date: Wed, 11 Apr 2007 13:37:02 -0700
To: 
Subject: KINDNESS COUNTS

FOR RELEASE 	                        CONTACT:           Susan Wheeler
(202) 224-5150
Week of April 15, 2007		                 Laura Thurston Goodroe
(202) 224-7500

			KINDNESS COUNTS
	Guest opinion submitted by Idaho Senator Mike Crapo

Many have heard about the disparaging remarks made recently by a
national talk radio host about a university women's basketball team.
>From the media to Capitol Hill to work and school, public and private
discourse has steadily deteriorated.  What was once considered uncouth,
impolite or unspeakable has become disturbingly commonplace in words we
use to talk to, or about, others.

We need only look as far as our children to see this.  According to the
National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC), 43 percent of teens were
cyberbullying victims last year.  Cyberbullying is using the Internet,
cell phones, video game systems or other electronic communication
devices to send or post text or images intended to hurt or embarrass
someone.  The NCPC also found that almost 80 percent of teens said they
either didn't have parental rules about Internet use or found ways
around those rules.  We must protect our children against victimization,
electronic or otherwise; it's also our job to set the tone for
appropriate discourse.  Children learn what they live, and they don't
have to look far for inappropriate discourse.  

Standing Rules of the Senate state that "No Senator in debate shall,
directly or indirectly, by any form of words impute to another Senator
or to other Senators any conduct or motive unworthy or unbecoming a
Senator."  The House has similar rules.  References to personal conduct
and motivations of other Members are strictly prohibited in floor debate
as is the use of personally offensive words.  For example, in the House,
it's okay to call an amendment "deceptive" or "hypocritical;" however, a
Member cannot use those terms to describe another Member.  Yet, there
are repeated instances of Members requesting to "take down the words" or
strike offending verbiage from the Congressional Record.  In an era of
hypercritical, sound-bite-friendly political debate, values of comity,
statesmanship and decorum have become obscured behind posturing and
bellicose grandstanding.  

Most organizations, including Congress, reflect norms of society.  It's
in Hollywood:  The verbal battle between Rosie O'Donnell and Donald
Trump made the news recently.  It's in politics:  Members of both
parties mince fewer and fewer words when it comes to outright and
outrageous verbal attacks-Congressional campaigns last year were more
bitter and disingenuous than ever before.  It's in our homes, businesses
and schools:  How often do we hear people in these settings using
disrespectful and even hateful words and sentiments?  

One of the most compelling lessons I learned from my mother was the
simple directive:  Be kind.  It's time we elevated our collective level
of discourse to something more respectful and considerate.  When another
driver cuts us off, perhaps we pause before letting fly with insults and
vitriolic lectures.  When the clerk at the checkout counter takes longer
than we think they should to help the person in front of us, perhaps
instead of fuming, we might consider what their day might have been
like.  When our boss or employee makes a mistake, maybe we first
consider possible reasons behind their actions rather than focus on how
it's ruined our own day.  The old adage about walking a mile in someone
else's shoes is very important to remember.  It's tempting to let our
tempers loose; but, the damage done often can be far greater than we
could have imagined.  Words can be weapons.  In an instant, we have the
verbal power to build up or destroy a human being, and the same can be
done to us.  For the sake of our children and society, it's time to
consider the way we speak to and about others and remember a mother's
words: "Above all else, be kind."  

WORD COUNT:  600

To link directly to this news release, please go to:
http://crapo.senate.gov/media/newsreleases/release_full.cfm?id=272205&&

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