The end of civilized discourse

Given the ways of politics, it’s possible that Britain’s future place in Europe was decided Thursday by a killer in a small town in West Yorkshire. Jo Cox, a Labour Party MP who had ardently supported the campaign to keep Britain in the European Union, was murdered by a man who allegedly shouted “Britain First,” the name and slogan of a radical anti-Islam party opposed to immigration.

Easy access to Britain has been a key element of the debate over whether to remain in the EU, which is to be decided by a referendum next Thursday. Membership in the bloc brings with it the ability to live and work anywhere in Europe. Rightly or wrongly, many in Britain feel they are losing jobs to a surge of migrants from less prosperous countries, attracted by generous benefits and a stronger economy.

Paul Golding, leader of Britain First, condemned the killing and insisted his group is being unfairly tarred. “We had nothing to do with it. We would not condone actions like that,” he said. Nonetheless, sympathy for Cox could sway enough votes to decide the referendum. The British pound gained strength as fears waned that the referendum would go against EU membership. Both the “remain” camp and the “leave” camp suspended their campaigns. However the remaining few days before the vote unfold, there were hopes the toxic nature of the debate would be tempered by the tragedy.

If so, the world would have gained at least some s mall measure of good f rom a senseless crime. The intensity of the anger that now surrounds political debates has inspired justifiable concern .“The ( Brexit) campaign has been incredibly negative on both sides, everybody stressing threats and dangers,” Harold Clarke, a Canadian professor of political economy at the University of Texas at Dallas, told the National Post’s Joseph Brean.

A city councillor in Calgary told Postmedia’s Don Braid: “We’re shocked by the level of anger some things generate. If the garbage collection is missed, people are just enraged.” Spectators at Calgary council meetings now have to pass through metal detectors, while glass partitions have been raised to shield councillors.

The most egregious example of increasing ugliness has been the manifestly rage-fuelled U.S. presidential campaign of Donald Trump, who responded to the slaughter of at least 49 innocents at an Orlando, Fla. gay club by accusing U. S. President Barack Obama of sympathizing with terrorists. Trump wants to ban Muslims from the U. S. and build a wall along the Mexican border, and says he doesn’t trust judges with families from outside the U. S. His many verbal assaults on Obama began early, with suggestions that there must be something wrong with a president whose father was born in Kenya.

Rather than distancing itself from anything to do with Trump, the Republican Party has made him its presumptive nominee for president and sought to live with him as best it can. Paul Ryan, the most senior elected Republican, recently agreed that Trump’s words are those of a racist, but said he would vote for him anyway, rather than let a Democrat win. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell suggested Trump “start talking about the issues that the American people care about and to start doing it now,” but refused to openly repudiate the candidate. Trump responded by suggesting his party’s leaders should “be quiet,” while he continues to stir up religious and ethnic intolerance with fiery speeches.

There have been suggestions that easy access to an audience of millions through social media is a factor in the degradation of public discourse. Reports this week indicated Orlando gunman Omar Mateen paused in his shooting spree to check for news of himself on the Internet and post political rants on Facebook. It would be wrong to blame the medium for the messages it carries, but it’s no secret that haters of all stripes appreciate the easy access they now have to receptive eyes and ears the world over.

Canadians can only be appalled as they watch the spread of such grotesque pathogens. We are fortunate that, for the most part, there has been little evidence of such naked malice taking hold here. But we would be naive to conclude that Canada is immune. People have every right to feel strongly about their views and beliefs, but must continue to place just as much emphasis on the rights of others to hold opposing views and be treated with respect and civility. It’s a tribute to the country that tolerance continues to remain uppermost in Canadian sensibilities; it’s crucial to ensure it remains there, at a time when it appears to be eroding elsewhere.