Civic volunteers deflect principled proposals by responding only to trivial practical details

Evidence

In this manner, even minor principles went unheard. When the school district was considering building a new school, Danielle brought in a magazine describing an “‘ecologically sound design for a school grounds,”’ with native plants instead of a grass lawn. Danielle described the article, saying excitedly that it was about building environmentally sound schools as a method of educating children and saving money and saving the planet in a minor way. The group’s only response was Debbie’s, ‘Yeah, a lot of kids are allergic to grass!’’ Otherwise, they just said it looked like a nice idea, especially the redwood sundecks. Danielle’s speech on the principle behind the design fell into a void of silence, as if she had not even said it. — Nina Eliasoph, Avoiding politics, 344

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Civic talk is improvised practical etiquette, not systematic logic — Nina Eliasoph, Avoiding politics: how Americans…, 186; Concrete small tasks recruit first-time volunteers better than appeals to duty — Nina Eliasoph, Avoiding politics: how Americans…, 188; Volunteers acknowledge social problems only after they are already solved. — Nina Eliasoph, Avoiding politics: how Americans…, 256 (+4 more)

Broader Connections

• Volunteers suppress principled political talk because it seems unseemly #corroborates (0.85) — Nina Eliasoph, Avoiding politics, 276
• Volunteers silence political discussion to preserve their can-do optimism #corroborates (0.82) — Nina Eliasoph, Avoiding politics, 204
• Volunteers themselves restrict political talk to preserve their civic faith #corroborates (0.80) — Nina Eliasoph, Avoiding politics, 192
• Volunteers suppress political talk because it would sink their feeling of empowerment #corroborates (0.78)