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Start Making Sense – George Monbiot
“Is this democracy’s death spiral? Are we falling, in this and other countries, into a lethal cycle of fury and reaction, that blocks the reasoned conversation on which civic life depends?”
monbiot.com/2019/10/04/sta…
“Is this democracy’s death spiral? Are we falling, in this and other countries, into a lethal cycle of fury and reaction, that blocks the reasoned conversation on which civic life depends?”
monbiot.com/2019/10/04/sta…
“So what do we do? How, in particular, do we discuss genuinely alarming situations, like Brexit or climate breakdown, without triggering threat responses? The first thing the science tells us is this: treat everyone with respect.” 
”The stupidest thing you can possibly do, if you want to save democracy, is to call your opponent gammon.”
“By setting up people’s assemblies, it seeks to create a civic space in which other voices can be heard. As another paper by Stephen Porges, the neuroscientist whose work has done so much to explain our reflexes, points out,....
“our brains don’t allow us to experience compassion for others until we feel safe. Creating calm spaces in which to explore our differences is an essential step towards rebuilding democratic life.
”All this might sound like common sense. It is. But understanding how our minds function helps us to see when they are unconciously working for the demagogues. Breaking the spiral means restoring the mental state that allows us to think”
