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Shame, shame, old man!

In an amazing Paul Krugman piece entitled Lessons in Civility, Mr. Krugman opines:

But there's more going on than a simple attempt to impose a double standard. All this fuss about the rudeness of the Bush administration's critics is an attempt to preclude serious discussion of that administration's policies. For there is no way to be both honest and polite about what has happened in these past three years.

And generations of gentlemen, indeed the ghosts of gentlemen past, shake their heads disapprovingly. A well brought up man may be polite about anything, and his failure to do so is not the limitations of the world, but merely a reflection of his failings.

Shame, shame, Mr. Krugman.

Comments

ouch--I think Krugman may have been referring to Jesus Christ--who did not tolerate certain things... viz., the scene in the Temple, scenes in Nazareth, etc.
Not sure I buy the Biblical reference--can you be a bit more direct, because I sure didn't pick up on it. Even if so, none of the etiquette manuals which I give credit regularly ask, "What would Jesus do?"
"A well brought up man may be polite about anything"? Looks like you're setting yourself up with that one, aside from it begging the question, "Why be polite in certain situations?" I don't know that politeness is a requirement but a tool to facilitate discussion when both parties are likely (or perhaps willing? or able?) to respond positively. Is there no room for "I'm mad as hell, and I'm not going to take it anymore!"?
But Krugman doesn't say, "I could be polite, but I choose not to do so." He says there is 'no way' to be both polite and honest about something. I don't think there are very many (I certainly can't think of one) instances Mr. Krugman is likely to face as an editorialist that exclude politeness and honesty. There are cases where you might choose to be impolite, or extreme cases where politeness is unlikely: being tied to a chair and tortured, I suppose. But otherwise, 'impossible' would be a very hard term for Krugman to support.
I'm not sure I can agree with Mr Krugman either, take "It's impolite to say that George W. Bush is the most fiscally irresponsible president in American history" Thats entirely polite. Saying "he's the stupid younger son of a dynasty of corrupt businessmen whose ameoba like understanding of economics has made him the most fiscally irresponsible president in American history" is impolite. Views as to the accuracy of the comment may vary though. Krugman is onto something when he points out that all and sundry are being rude and the Republicans are crying foul (I'm sure the Democrats do too...) what's needed of course if a nice phalanx of (hunts for word, finds it in playground) gobshites to mouth off at each other while the more civilised folk conduct 'policy debate'. The Republicans have Talk Radio, the Democrats need an equivalent. Still, now the Republicans have found a European intellectual to govern 'CalYforniya' for them I'm sure we can look forward to the rhetoric moving up a few gears. M

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