CHAPTER 4: The DEMOCRATIC (R)EVOLUTION We are better than we realize we are. For the first time, we can now create institutions of governance that elicit our best. Copyright 2026 by Paul L. LaClair
Value for Thursday of Week 24 in the season of Ripening
Being Considerate
Considering people in a positive way is a form of honoring them.
- . . . though force can protect in emergency, only justice, fairness, consideration and cooperation can finally lead men to the dawn of eternal peace. [Dwight D. Eisenhower]
- My mother early on taught us to respect all animals, and I mean all animals – not just cats and dogs but rats and snakes and spiders and fish and wildlife, so I really grew up believing they are just like us and just as deserving of consideration. [Joanna Lumley]
- Sri Yukteswar showed no special consideration to those who happened to be powerful or accomplished; neither did he slight others for their poverty or illiteracy. He would listen respectfully to words of truth from a child, and openly ignore a conceited pundit. [Paramahansa Yogananda]
We can consider anything, from whether change careers to what color socks to wear, but when the word “consideration” is used alone, it usually refers to how we treat another person or other people. Showing consideration, or being considerate, means acting in a way that is mindful and respectful of their circumstances, carefully considered.
Real
True Narratives
Consideration is more than mere civility but the subjects are closely related.
- Anna Post and Emily Post, Mr. Manners: Lessons from Obama on Civility (Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2010).
Technical and Analytical Readings
- P.M. Forni, Choosing Civility: The Twenty-Five Rules of Considerate Conduct (St. Martin's Press, 2002).
- P.M. Forni, The Civility Solution: What to Do When People Are Rude (St. Martin's Press, 2008).
- Stephen L. Carter, Civility: Manners, Morals, and the Etiquette of Democracy (Basic Books, 1998).
- John Sweeney, Return to Civility: A Speed of Laughter Project (Aerialist Press, 2007).
- Teresa M. Bejan, Mere Civility: Disagreement and the Limits of Toleration (Harvard University Press, 2017).
- Russell P. Johnson, Beyond Civility in Social Conflict: Dialogue, Critique, and Religious Ethics (Cambridge University Press, 2024).
Photographs
Documentary and Educational Films
Imaginary
Fictional Narratives
Poetry
Music: Composers, artists, and major works
Conductor Carlo Maria Giulini “was known for his probing, self-effacing approach to orchestral and operatic scores.” He was “an idealistic maestro acclaimed for his refined and insightful accounts of the standard orchestral repertory and for several now classic recordings of operas by Mozart and Verdi . . .” Here are links to his playlists, and to Giulini conducting live.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Piano Concerti 11-19 (approx. 183’): in this period, Mozart emphasized the interplay between the voices. These are not show pieces for the solo instrument but more traditional concerti, in which the solo voice takes its place among the others.
- Mozart, Piano Concerto No. 11 in F major, K. 413 (1783) (approx. 23’) (list of recorded performances)
- Mozart, Piano Concerto No. 12 in A major, K. 414 (1782) (approx. 25’) (list of recorded performances)
- Mozart, Piano Concerto No. 13 in C major, K. 415 (1783) (approx. 26-28’) (list of recorded performances)
- Mozart, Piano Concerto No. 14 in E-flat major, K. 449 (1784) (approx. 22-23’) (list of recorded performances)
- Mozart, Piano Concerto No. 15 in G-flat major, K. 450 (1784) (approx. 24’25’) (list of recorded performances)
- Mozart, Piano Concerto No. 16 in D major, K. 451 (1784) (approx. 24-26’) (list of recorded performances)
- Mozart, Piano Concerto No. 17 in G major, K. 453 (1784) (approx. 30-31’) (list of recorded performances)
- Mozart, Piano Concerto No. 18 in B-flat major, K. 456 (1784) (approx. 29-31’) (list of recorded performances)
- Mozart, Piano Concerto No. 19 in F major, K. 459 (1784) (approx. 27-28’) (list of recorded performances)
Other works:
- Jean-Philippe Rameau, Pièces de clavecin en concerts (1741) (approx. 52-65’) (list of recorded performances), are Rameau’s only chamber works, usually divided into five “concerts”. Both in good times (major keys) and in bad times (minor keys), each voice freely expresses itself, while giving room for the other voices to do the same.
Albums:
- Jane Ira Bloom, “Art and Aviation” (1991) (58’) is “a remarkably successful (and fairly early) attempt to bring electronic influences to bear on acoustic jazz.”
