In your opinion, are people more uncivil today than 20 years ago?

Yes: 81% (687 out of 847)
No: 19% (160 out of 847)

When asked if there is more incivility today than 20 years ago, a whopping 81% of our respondents answered "yes."

Frankly, the statistics came as no surprise. The media continues to report a rise in incivility, but we thought we would check for ourselves and hear what the general public has to say about it. Our writers did not just complain about the incivility they encounter, they told us why they think it is happening.

The minority of our respondents viewed our times not as 'uncivil,' just as more casual and informal, and described our interactions with others as more "mechanical" and lacking in the human touch. Others thought that things hadn't changed all that much. One writer, who considers racism to be the ultimate in incivility, thought we had shown some improvement over the last twenty years. Interestingly, not one of them tendered a rousing endorsement of our times.

The majority had a lot to say about what they believe to be the causes of incivility: lack of respect, lack of consideration, lack of patience, callousness, selfishness, intolerance for others and too much tolerance for bad language and poor behavior. And they weren't blaming it on the kids, but on adults. Ouch! How did we get here?

Many cited our fast-paced society as the biggest culprit. "Everyone is in too much of a hurry, [even] to give a thank you." " We don't say hello to our neighbors." ".The pace of life today forces people to behave rudely even though they have no intention of doing so." In our rushing around we have become oblivious to one another without even realizing it. Road rage, desk rage and sidewalk rage all erupt when we cease to tolerate even minor disruptions to our plans, schedules or destinations.

Others think that our general tolerance for profanity and our hardened attitude to violence and conflict contribute to the degradation of our civil environment, creating a sort of attitudinal smog that pollutes our societal atmosphere. There is no question that it is difficult to filter out the daily bombardment of profanity - on the radio, on TV, in the movies, in print, on the internet. Words that were bleeped five years ago have all four letters pronounced distinctly today.

It's too easy to blame an increase in incivility just on the media. "People only care about themselves, and their rights as a human being. They have forgotten about their neighbors and the dignity of being a good person." "The belief in the right of self-expression has created a mannerless society where the comfort of self is held to be more important than the comfort of those around them." Have we, in our insistence on our personal rights, become intolerant and inconsiderate of others?

This is a familiar sounding lament. So, where to now? Is it possible to create a change of climate, a human global warming effort? We believe that practicing the fundamentals of etiquette: kindness, consideration, honesty, sincerity and respect makes a tremendous difference to everyone we encounter. Our correspondents are correct. We can't blame this one on the kids. It is up to us, as adults, to make a commitment to practicing these fundamentals, to being examples to our children, their friends, their teachers, our neighbors, our colleagues and coworkers. It's nothing we don't already know - say, 'please,' 'thank-you' and 'you're welcome'; count to twenty instead of blowing your stack; give the other guy the benefit of the doubt, and take responsibility for yourself.

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