Photo by Toshio

The D.C. Council has declared March 20 as Polite Day, according to the Washington Times. Ward 5 Council member Harry Thomas, Jr. thought we could all stand a reminder to be a little kinder and gentler in our daily comings and goings, so we have him to thank for the citywide resolution.

Mr. Thomas thinks most people are not intentionally rude, just absorbed and distracted by trying to deal with everyday life.

“They don’t have time to get out of their shells,” he said.

So how does one celebrate Polite Day? Still unclear, though Thomas’s vision appears to include getting the word out through churchgoers in his ward. Mostly though, it seems like he’s just hoping we’ll all try to be a little nicer to each other. Take a minute to hold a door open, say please and thank you, smile, that kind of thing. Nothing wrong with that, of course. Still, we have to wonder at Thomas’s political strategy here. Is he making a brilliant play to give Ward 5 voters the warm fuzzies as he kicks his re-election campaign into gear? Or is he insulting the entire city by telling us, more or less, that we need to act right?