Some Unite and Concur Principles

1) If we can’t discuss the issues that affect our lives, we’re out of luck.

2) You catch more flies with honey than vinegar. You can convince more people with respectful language than mud-slinging.

3) Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. By this definition, most political dialogue is insane. We’re trying to change that.

4) Talking to people who agree with you politically is easy. Talking to people who disagree requires mastery. It’s worth the effort.

5) Jon Stewart went on the show Crossfire and pleaded with them to stop hurting each other with their divisive language. As citizens, we need to repeat that plea with our politicians, pundits and each other.

6) You get what you tolerate. When you tolerate erroneous (aka stupid) arguments and let them drown out arguments that make sense, you’re complicit in erroneous (aka stupid) politics.

7) You can, and should, disagree without being disagreeable.

8) Life is too short to spend it hurling insults at each other. But it’s too precious to stay silent about important issues.

9) You can agree with someone politically and object to how they discuss politics.

10) You can disagree with someone politically and celebrate the way they discuss politics.

11) All great marshal artists know that the person who gets mad is at a disadvantage, and all great communicators know that calm assertion is ultimately more powerful than rabid rage. (You’ve got to be tough if you’re going to be stupid, but if you’re smart, you don’t have to be quite as tough.)

12) Speaking respectfully doesn’t mean taking crap. (I couldn’t find a better word for that that fit my principles, but I’m open for suggestions.)

13) No one is absolutely correct and no one is absolutely wrong. Smart communicators learn from everyone.

14) All-or nothing thinking and communicating is one of the greatest obstacles to reasonable dialogue. Life is nuanced and our political dialogue should be as nuanced as possible without losing clarity.

15) It’s easy to get off track. Our track is to develop a reasonable dialogue about reasonable dialogue. We are committed to stay on track and talk about how we talk, not political issues.

16) We practice what we preach – to the best of our ability.

17) Democracy is not a spectator sport. It starts with us.

Check out our Unite and Concur Mission Statement.