CIVILITY
There's no excuse for not showing respect
I so disagree with the low expectation of civil behavior expressed in the May 2 Letter of the Day ("The governor and the angry crowd: It's part of the job, sir"). The writer seems to express the opinion that shouting down a speaker with whom one disagrees, as audience members at a recent forum did to Gov. Mark Dayton, should be tolerated as a mature adult response. How ridiculous.
Whether the example is shown by a U.S. representative shouting "You lie" at President Obama during a speech, or a high school student's angry outburst at a teacher, there is a growing disregard for civil behavior in our society.
These uncontrolled emotional outbursts are indeed "juvenile" in nature because the lack of respect that they show immediately escalates the discourse to an emotional confrontation that destroys our ability to reconcile differences with one another.
As for the "implied understanding that goes with the job," my view, whether the figure is a governor, teacher, police officer or neighbor, is that I should show respect even when I disagree.
Gary Clements, St. Paul
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We should not be surprised by the governor's response to the vocal audience ("Dayton says forum crowd in Shakopee was 'juvenile,' " May 1). After all, he has handlers and advisers who daily tell him the pulse of the state. They all want to keep their jobs, so I am sure they tell him what he wants to hear. Plus, the governor lives in a much different world than the average taxpayer does.
Everyone has their hands out to him, asking for consideration of their special causes. By the nature of politics, he knows that in order to be re-elected, the electorate needs to look favorably on his policies and history of achievements.
What better way to do that than to give funding to every organization that has a minority, disenfranchised person, handicapped or union affiliation. After all, it is not his money.