My dog used to be the canine equivalent of a Buddhist monk.

Silent. Observant. Silently focused on squirrels and turtles.

Then we moved in next to that neighbor…you know the one. The one whose dog treats barking like it is a competitive sport, complete with early morning warmups and late night encore performances.

Within weeks, my previously zen pup had gone full frontal barking.

If Neighbor Dogs, yes there are two, bark at a leaf, my dog barks at the air in solidarity.

Turns out, learned behavior is not just for dogs.

Remember when public discourse involved at least a modicum of civility? Then along came an insecure orange president who realized that if you bark loudly and insult everyone in sight, people either join in or get drowned out.

Before you knew it, we, the much maligned citizens of the United States of America, have all moved into the noisy neighborhood.

Now the world feels a bit like my backyard at 6am. Too many dogs barking, not enough thinking.

The moral? Whether it’s dogs or democracies, bad behavior spreads fast when it’s modeled loudly enough.

Maybe it’s time we all went back to being a little more monk like.

Or at the very least, learn to ignore the falling leaf.