When you read the news, look at social media, or sit down at some family holiday dinners, you would think America was coming apart at the seams. And in some ways we may be.
But as you get out into the real world, you find that we are far closer to one another than it seems.
The trouble is, the things that are proposed to unite us – knowledge of current events, connecting digitally with our long-lost acquaintances – are being designed to enrage us. They require our attention to maximize for their shareholders.
And while I am all for increasing profits (my investments require it), these companies are all about relentless profit growth and remaining relevant.
And I don’t blame them.
That is the nature of a corporation. We cannot expect them to slow themselves down.
In some cases, regulation can do the trick. But telling a company they can’t make more money requires showing that they are creating real harm. And when you dig into this topic, it is murky at best.
The best way to combat these forces that are unknowingly (I am giving the benefit of the doubt here) dividing us, is to get back in front of one another. In real life.
I took a car ride with a friend today. We sit on opposite sides of the previous election. But we are good friends. We laugh about many of the same things. We love our country and way of life the exact same. We believe many of same the fundamentals.
Our real only difference is our interactions with social media and where we get our news. The same topic, spun two completely different ways.
At times it feels like we live in different countries. But we are neighbors. Separated by a three-foot tall fence.
Our realities are the same. Our goals are oriented towards the same location. But we have vastly different perspectives of how to get there.
Bums me out.
But when we are together, we can laugh our way through the issues. We solve problems. We give our speeches, and listen respectfully to each other’s perspective.
I like it here. In real life feels like the America I know.