I Won't Say Anything Because Someone Might Film It

Civility is not just good manners. It’s one of the social technologies that makes civilization possible.Today I talk about why that feels like it’s disappearing: politicians who no longer see each other as human, internet incentives that reward dunking over compromise, cameras that turn every minor disagreement into a possible public trial, and the way all of this bleeds into everyday life.Also featured: a Brooklyn Chipotle, a tamarin raised on internet conflict, Edmund Burke, and a small moment in Prospect Park that reminded me there may still be hope for us yet.Chapters0:00 Preview0:18 Intro0:35 McCain, Obama, and the loss of civility1:25 Civility is more than politeness2:11 Why civilization requires self-restraint3:34 Why Congress stopped seeing each other as human4:52 The internet rewards dunking, not compromise5:52 Why America’s experiment depends on disagreement6:44 Did politics rot us, or did we rot politics?7:34 How the internet became our behavior school8:05 The tamarin thought experiment10:13 The rude Chipotle in Brooklyn11:31 Cameras, virality, and the death of low-stakes conflict12:53 Burke, reciprocity, and why civility matters14:11 The invisible miracle of the market14:31 Prospect Park and a small apology17:06 There is hope for us yet