Call me “old-fashioned,” but I believe men should hold the door open for a woman, say “bless you” when someone sneezes and “excuse me” after belching. This is common courtesy and necessary, along with other manners, for a civil society.
Unfortunately, I’ve recently noticed the decline of civility among my peers, not just in the things we typically think of when we hear the words “gentlemen” or “lady,” but in our political discourse.
In my column “Being conscious of differing perspectives can promote tolerance, progress,”  I wrote about seeing the world through the eyes of others to have a better chance at healing the deep wounds of division.
I’m reminded of Atticus Finch’s words from Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird”: “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view…until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.”
These words serve as a consistent reminder of my responsibility as a citizen to contribute to the strengthening of our civil society. However, this is easier said than done. 
I, as well as many others, struggle to disagree without being disagreeable. But can you blame us? There isn’t much else to look to other than what is presented to us on the 24-hour news channels. The anchors and pundits often partake in shouting matches, cut each other off and resort to turning off someone else’s microphone.
Then there’s the advent of the infamous internet sensation Tomi Lahren. Her brief segments on Facebook are often filled with yelling, anger and rage, have permeated our timelines. People can’t seem to stop talking about her.
Even though my political beliefs are near opposite of Lahren’s, I always press play when I see a new video posted. It’s like I love to hate it. There’s this new sense that we are becoming addicted to being angry. 
But is this kind of behavior contributing to the erosion of civility in our daily lives? I would say yes, especially when people are more fired up about their beliefs than ever before. When something is said or done that someone disagrees with, they take to the streets or head to their local elected official’s office. Most of the time these demonstrations are peaceful, but there have been incidents in which property was damaged, people were arrested and lives were lost.
It is easy to ignore the intersection of what we consume and that of what we produce. We are human. As complex and dynamic as we are, we’re like parrots, mimicking that of what we see and hear. The lines may be blurred, but the result is clear: the less civility we witness, the less we will conduct ourselves.
Stay civil my friends. 
Frederick Bell is a 19-year-old mass communication freshman from Greensburg, Louisiana.