In his remarkable speech Wednesday night at the “Together We Thrive” gathering in Tucson, President Obama offered up words of hope that in responding to the tragedy in Tucson, we should strive to improve our civil discourse and to live up to the example that young Christina Green expected in how our democracy should function. The word “civil” has many shades of meaning in the context of Obama’s speech and in our society. Considering these meanings brings to mind some suggestions for how our country can move forward.

The market has dropped over 400 points in the past two days, and it’s been down 9 out of the past 12 days. While there are certainly a lot of factors influencing the situation, the market’s volatility sends a clear message is that the reform bill is inadequate to restoring confidence in their wake.