In the era of the 24/7 news cycle, civility in the media has taken a backseat to the true driver: emotional negative responses to opposing views of politics and politicians.  “We cannot do democracy without a heavy dose of civility,” said Mike Pence. On a beautiful Easter Monday morning, a group of concerned San Diegans gathered in the halls of the Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice Building on the USD campus to talk about restoring civility to civic dialogue. The four-hour program was the brainchild of Carl Luna, a political science professor at Mesa College and a frequent media commentator on the political scene. The idea was born last fall at the Catfish Club of San Diego with a panel discussing civility and the need to return to a time when we treated each other with respect. George Walker Smith, Catfish founder and former Board of Education president; Ed Quinn, former general manager of KGTV; Dorothy Smith, former president of the Board of Education and member of the San Diego Ethics Commission; and Luna — who moderated the event — all came together to discuss the topic. They joined keynote speaker Dan Walters, long-time political science columnist for the Sacramento Bee, and five panelists: Constance Carroll, president of San Diego Community College District; Murray Galinson of the National Conflict Resolution Center; Larry Hinman, a psychologist and professor from USD; Tony Perry, San Diego bureau chief of the Los Angeles Times; and political consultant Tom Shepard. Walker Smith kicked off the conversation with something we all are aware of: “The change in civility in the last eight to 10 years where people talk at each other.” “The social media,” he said, “have contributed to the prevalence of incivility. We have work to do.” Walters gave his detailed history of politics in California with emphasis on the “good, bad and the ugly.” “It was semi-corrupt in the 1950s and 1960s,” he said, “but they did a world-class job of building parks, schools and highways.” His definition of civility was more than politeness and good manners. He saw it as a “dialogue leading to something constructive, yearning for resolution. … How did California get so tarnished? Well, the answer is economic troubles, political paralysis and incivility.” Walters explained that in the late 1970s, high birth rates and high immigration rates in California led to a number of consequences: more traffic on the roads, more kids in schools, water issues and a changing economy. Proposition 13, Walters said, “divided us and changed the political dynamic,” and the state took over city responsibilities. “In the late 1970s, the effect was as if ex-legislative staffers were like mutant life forms interested in their careers more than policies,” he said. “Initiative entre-preneurs evolved and made the legislature ineffective and irrelevant.” While Walters painted a grim picture of the current Sacramento legislature, he left it to the panelists to suggest solutions to restoring civility. Carroll referred to “the others,” wherein people marginalize those with whom they disagree. An example would be “birthers” promoting falsehoods about President Barack Obama’s place of birth. Incivility makes opponents the “others.” Murray Galinson said he thinks “debates should not be personal attacks,” while Tony Perry believes  “incivility makes easy journalism.” “To listen is the first principle in civility,” Hinman said, pointing out that civility is a necessary virtue, needed in order to agree to disagree. “Words do matter. People should tell the truth and be accountable.” Luna talked about so much hyper-partisanship, a decline in collegiality and even gerrymandered districts. To sum up the day’s seminar: civility is patriotic. Recall the inaugural address of John F. Kennedy. “So let us begin anew remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of weakness and sincerity is always subject to proof. Let us never negotiate out of fear, but let us never fear to negotiate. Let both sides explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those problems which divide us.” This first annual community conference restoring civility to civic dialogue is only the beginning. For more information, visit www.sandiego.edu/civility. — Sandy Lippe is a 36-year resident of University City and the former president of the UC Community Association.