Is This a Sad July 4th?
To The Editor:
A brief comment in the national news tonight called my attention to a current article by Mitt Romney in The Atlantic magazine. Rather than pen a festive, America-loving message for Independence Day, the GOP Senator and former presidential nominee chose to write a dark, sad opinion piece. “America is in denial,” he opines. “Too many Americans are blithely dismissing threats that could prove cataclysmic.” Romney laments the “blithe dismissal” which Americans give to numerous issues that he mentions, but offers little in the way of solutions.
I am as distressed as Romney and many others in leadership positions about the many serious problems our country faces, but the thing that distresses me most is the concentration on hand-wringing and namecalling, with no effort going into searching for solutions. Everyone is concentrating on and lamenting the wide and deep gulfs between us, but no-one in leadership seems to have any idea for effective action.
Over the past 250 years there have been many times when the political divisions in our country were as serious and as deep as they are now. History tells us that, with the exception of the period from 1861 to 1865, we have always managed to work within our differences to move our governments and our society forward.
It is clear that building significant majority opinions on political and social matters, in spite of the great efforts being expended to do so, is much more difficult and less likely to achieve success now than it used to be. So what can we do?
We have to work together! Not to build consensus by changing the minds of others who hold their opinions and beliefs just as strongly as we hold ours – that is often hopeless and strongly resisted. Instead, we must find points and identify actions on which we can agree to go forward.
Compromise does not require that we abandon our convictions. It does require that we not concentrate on convincing others that we are right, and work diligently on finding some common ground.
This in turn requires genuine communication between people who know they disagree, sometimes fundamentally. That kind of communication cannot occur unless there is mutual respect between the participants.
If you want to have your views influence what goes on, you have to make friends with people with whom you disagree. Don’t let differing viewpoints come between you and your neighbor. Respect them, and have serious discussions with them. Find something you agree on. And then communicate that to others, particularly in government. Try it – you’ll like it!
Arnold Romberg
La Grange