We’ve lost sight of something about our humanity, and it’s hurting our politics |
We’ve lost sight of something about our humanity, and it’s hurting our politics
March 9, 2026 — 5:00am
You have reached your maximum number of saved items.
Remove items from your saved list to add more.
Save this article for later
Add articles to your saved list and come back to them anytime.
Last year, or perhaps the year before, I heard on the radio someone in the police hierarchy talking about the increasing lack of respect he had observed between people sharing the roads. Drivers weren’t as careful around pedestrians. Pedestrians weren’t paying attention to cars. Cyclists and motorcyclists may have got a mention, too.
The point stayed with me – perhaps because, around that time, I twice watched as a car drove through a red light when, as a pedestrian, it was my right of way. Both times I was shocked; once, because my partner and my son were with me, I was furious.
The anger was justified, I feel – if hypocritical, because I, too, have made my share of driving mistakes, including one that resulted in a penalty, I think not too long after those experiences. I was shocked at myself – ashamed. But it makes sense that I, too, am part of the problem. Most of us are not only drivers or only pedestrians. Sometimes we are one, sometimes the other.
It follows that the lack of respect the policeman mentioned is general rather than tribal. It is not that drivers hate pedestrians or vice versa. There is a broader lack of care: a turning inwards or away. A not-looking-properly, in every sense.
Thankfully, the opposite stubbornly persists. A week ago, the grandmother of one of my son’s friends came by to pick him up. She brought treats from her garden: basil,........