Civility. It's a word that's gotten a lot of use lately. Sadly, it took a horrible incident in Tucson, Ariz., to bring it to our attention.

Unless you've been living in a cave, I'm sure you, like me, were in shock to hear the news that Democratic Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was shot in Tucson during one of her "On Your Corner" meetings with constituents outside of a Safeway shopping center.

The shooter took the lives of six people, including a federal judge and a nine-year-old girl born on 9/11. Fourteen others were wounded including Ms. Giffords.

The initial suspicion among many in the media, and I suggest the public at large, was that the shooter, Jared Loughner, was acting on the heated political rhetoric that has come to personify our political culture today.

As the investigation has progressed it is becoming clearer that his motive for the shooting has less to do with politics and more to do with a twisted sense of reality. We don't know yet, and may never know, if all the bloviating had any impact. But it is becoming increasingly clear that Mr. Loughner is a very sick and disturbed man.

Repulsed by this tragedy, we reexamined our political discourse, at least for a time. Our political leaders called on the nation and our institutions to pull together to work and grieve as one America.

"We don't know yet the motives of the assailant, or whether he acted alone," said Speaker of the House John Boehner in a conference call with House members shortly after the shooting. "What we do know is that this was an act of unspeakable brutality and violence, one that has no place in our society.

"As you've hear me say, an attack on one who serves is an attack on all who serve," he continued. "This is a time for the House to pull together as an institution—one body, unified in our common purpose of serving the American people and fighting for freedom and justice guaranteed to all by our Constitution."

He went on to say that, "What is critical is that we stand together at this dark time as one body." He said this was a time to support the injured, killed and the people of that district and he mentioned the "need to rally around each other."

House members, he concluded, need to "lock arms, both in condemnation of this heinous act, and in prayer for those killed and wounded in this attack. At a time when an individual has shown us humanity at its worst, we must rise to the occasion for our nation and show Congress at its best."

At the memorial service for the victims of the Jan. 8 shooting, President Barack Obama said he had come there as "an American who, like all Americans, kneels to pray with you today and will stand by you tomorrow."

He noted that when incidents like this take place questions arise around "gun safety" and the "adequacy of our mental health system" and what can be done to prevent these types of incidents in the future.

However, he continued, at a time when "our discourse has become so sharply polarized—at a time when we are far too eager to lay the blame for all that ails the world at the feet of those who happen to think differently than we do—it's important for us to pause for a moment and make sure that we're talking with each other in a way that heals, not in a way that wounds."

The shooting, he went on to say, highlights that while we should be willing to raise questions and challenge old assumptions, "What we cannot do is use this tragedy as one more occasion to turn on each other. That we cannot do."

This should be an occasion to discuss these issues "with a good dose of humanity" and not engage in the perennial blame game once more. Instead, it should be an occasion to "expand our moral imaginations, to listen to each other more carefully" and recognize that "our hopes and dreams are bound together."

"If this tragedy prompts reflection and debate—as it should—let's make sure it's worthy of those we have lost," the President said. "Let's make sure it's not on the usual plane of politics and point-scoring and pettiness that drifts away in the next news cycle."

In the coming months, independent insurance agents and others in this industry will make an annual sojourn to Washington, D.C., and to their state capitals to visit with elected representatives. At those meetings they will discuss some very important topics affecting the future of this industry. They will ask their representatives to work with them to implement some law or support a cause that is of special interest and importance.

Many agents will gather afterward and socialize in friendly surrounds. Indeed, while some may be out in the business world engaged in heavy competition with the agent down the street, producers have always displayed amazing civility and camaraderie when brought together.

In light of the tragedy in Tucson, after sitting down with representatives and discussing the pressing issues of the day, it would be a great service to this industry and the nation, to remind those representatives of the need for civility in our politics and culture. Perhaps an invite to those representatives is in order–to witness the courtesy exhibited by independent agents.

Perhaps this small act by producers could bring a bit of civility to the rancorous nature of our politics. Leading by example, independent agents and brokers today could certainly teach our national political scene something about civility and respect.

What do you think?