Thoughts About Politeness on Inauguration Day

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My friend, Lee Anna, wrote a thoughtful and timely post on her blog the other day about politeness, kindness and respect.

First she talked about kindness in general:
 Each person deserves respect and I am saying the world will be more content if we respect each other.

And then specifically about the lack of civility we have seen recently in the political arena:
This has been weighing heavily on my heart, and I feel I must express it... 
It is not acceptable for anyone to deride citizens, especially leaders.
 It is not understandable nor acceptable nor an American value to denigrate groups of people.

We would not allow children to say derogatory things out loud, that are being said by some elected officials. If a person speaks for America, I expect them to represent all of it's citizens with restraint and respect. We deserve that. We should expect no less from them than we would a friend, a spouse, a child or a neighbor.

I was very impressed with how well she expressed thoughts that many of us share.  It's worth reading her whole post which you can find here.

On this Inauguration Day I'm grateful for the peaceful transition of power which we have again enjoyed and for the example of civility and politeness which President Obama has set for the nation.