Last week we posted on our website a photo of the Glover climate change march, which was organized by elementary school students.
It was a lovely energetic march, shared by adults, but its enthusiasm came from children who are sincerely worried about their future and about the planet’s.
As they have a right to be. It’s long past the time when one could debate whether climate change is real.
Science isn’t subjective. An employee here has a sticker on her car that says: “The good thing about science is it’s true whether or not you believe in it.”
But the purpose of this writing is not to discuss climate change; it’s to discuss civility. Disagreeing with the formidable body of science that says manmade climate change is very real is no excuse for calling fervent children names as one writer did on the Chronicle’s Facebook page.
We’ve taken those cruel words down, and we won’t repeat them here.
So many things have gone wrong with this country, but the tone of discourse is big among them. We have all always disagreed — that’s democracy. We aren’t supposed to agree about everything.
But we do need to recognize that we are friends and neighbors, and we can disagree civilly. We can be good neighbors and good people, even if our politics don’t align.
Disparaging children?
That’s a new and shameful low.
Please. We want to see no more of that type of dialogue on our website, our Facebook page, or anywhere else.
Social media seems to have given people some license to say what they would not say in person. Would our writer confront small children and belittle them to their faces?
We don’t think so.
Disagree, sure. But be respectful. — T.S.
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