Doing unto others ...

In the course of airing their differences, one Carefree town councilman publicly called another councilman a “jerk” during a recent meeting.

In his retort, that maligned councilman insinuated his fellow councilman lacked political courage.

This exchange was mild compared to the in‑your‑face rudeness and outright brutish behavior that has sadly become all too common in our society these days. This coarsening seems to permeate nearly every strata of our society–from angry motorists on Loop 101 to rude shoppers at malls–as inconsideration and a sense of rage seem to be the all the rage these days.

Somewhere along the line we’ve lost the ability to disagree without becoming disagreeable.

We’ve lost our patience on the road and we’ve become so fixated on getting what we want that we forget to extend the common courtesies we expect from others.

For this New Year, let us all make a resolution to uphold the Golden Rule. Just making an effort to “do unto others as we would have done to us” can go a long way to making a positive difference in our society.