The recent altercation between Prof. Gates and Policeman Crowley in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has taken on a life of its own since the president made a comment about "stupid" police action. All three are going to have a beer together at the White House.
Although that issue is about a unique American social problem, racial profiling, an article in today's New York Times brought to mind a proverb I learned as a kid: "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words cannot hurt me."
We know the proverb is an overstatement. Obviously words can be cutting. But as a skinny, runt of a kid, it became part of my repertoire. Until this morning when I read an interpretive article in the NYTimes, the proverb had not crossed my mind for decades. The writers, Michael Wilson and Solomon Moore, analyzed differences in tolerance among humans, a trait immensely important in the business world. Some people let words roll off like water on a duck's back, while others stew and get angry over slights. Indeed, the Honor Code of many Southern males and the urban responses to being "dissed" are all part of the same problem: how do you deal with disrespect? It's an issue that belongs under the rubrics of emotional intelligence and social skills.
A Delicate Issue for Officers on the Street is one that I hope will be digested and talked over.