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Civil conversation is hard.

I cry every time I watch the six minute opening scene from The Newsroom, an HBO series from 2012. Yes, it’s well produced, written and acted. But that’s not why I cry.  I cry because the words spoken call to the longing in my heart of what I want our country to be. Of what I thought our country was as I grew up. It echoes my belief before I learned that the America referenced was a myth — that some […]

Collectively, there are thousands of organizations and funders already working to improve our country. So why does our country appear to be a mess? The weakest part of our country is our willingness to live in a narrative/news stream that confirms our own bias and demonizes others. We could make our collective work exponentially more effective by fostering strong relationships among people of different viewpoints. Our current frayed social fabric is the result of “winner take all” politics, party loyalty […]

As I watched the service for Bush 41, I remembered the seeds of discord that were sowed 1980-92, which has led to the political environment we have today. I disagreed with most of the Bush 41 policies. I was appalled by the air attacks on Iraq, at the incompletion of the battle and other civilian casualties that resulted from his policies. There were highlights and lowlights. Our national power struggle became visceral. Our belief that our voice mattered to the […]