In a genuinely civilized society that may be true, but the one we live in today has deviated quite a bit from the ideal. The deep-rooted principle of civility has given a number of people, not least the anti-gun lobby, an upper hand whenever arbitrary abuse of power and even outright lies aren't contested forcefully enough immediately after they occur. I once believed in extreme politeness, seven year as the vice president of NRA Finland was a hard lesson that taught me otherwise. And I wasn't by far the meanest pitbull NRA had in its ranks at the time; those are the people who actually get things done and profoundly influence people on both sides of the debate, no matter whether someone likes it or not. My degree in behavioral sciences helped immensely understanding the model in practise.That's simply not true. I think a fair number make the claim you have to justify their own very questionable behaviors. We "carriers" do need to set example as good, no, great ambassadors.
Off the soapbox for now. The world has changed from what it once was. I'm not happy about it either.