Civility means “Do what I say, peon”.
Hah! During that terrible FoxNews debate, when Cruz went on his rant about Marco being the son of a bartender and Kasich being the son of a mailman, and everyone laughed when he got around to Trump, I couldn't help thinking of this old joke American conservatives used to tell in the 1950s, when the threat of Soviet communism was very real in this country:
Two acquaintances run into each other in 1919 while attending a Revolutionary music concert in the town hall."Hello, there, Ivan!" bellows Kasmir, grabbing his arm. "How glorious is our Revolution! Here I am the son of a farmer and you are the son of a prince, but now we attend the same concert as equals!"
Kasmir nodded politely.
After the concert, the men of the town made their way to the tavern. There, once again, Ivan smiled broadly and clapped Kasmir on the back, bragging to his friends, "Comrades! Let us toast to the Glorious Revolution, we who are sons of tinkers and farmers, freely drinking here with Comrade Kasmir, the son of a prince!" To which Kasmir lifted his stein and again, nodded politely.
Many beers later, Ivan and Kasmir found themselves side by side in the dark, facing the urine-stained wall behind the tavern.
"Will you look at this!" Ivan boomed. "I am the son of a farmer and you are the son of a prince, and yet here we stand, unbuttoned together, pissing freely to the glory of the Revolution!
"But, Kasmir, my pee sounds like the rushing of the great Volga River over the rocks, but from you I hear nothing!"
To which Kasmir quietly replied, "That's because I am peeing on your coat, peasant."