Advice from the Enlightenment: In the face of crude bullying and humorless lies, try wit and a passion for justice
"We are living through a climate change
in politics. Bigotry, bullying, mendacity, vulgarity — everything
emitted by the tweets of President Trump and amplified by his followers
has damaged the atmosphere of public life. The protective layer of
civility, which makes political discourse possible, is disappearing like
the ozone around Earth.
How can we
restore a healthy climate? There is no easy answer, but some historic
figures offer edifying examples. The one I propose may seem unlikely,
but he transformed the climate of opinion in his era: Voltaire, the
French philosopher who mobilized the power of Enlightenment principles
in 18th-century Europe."
