Our troubled democracy
How can we work together for a common goal? Have we lost the ability to listen?
To problem solve, we must be patient and willing to search for the truth.
Repeating false talking points is easier than laboring for the truth. Our democracy is in a state of divorce, trapped between two determined parties, unwilling to compromise.
In the words of Abraham Lincoln, “A house divided cannot stand.” We are Americans first regardless of our ancestry, religious beliefs and/or political views. As Americans we have a duty to pull this democracy together.
What sacrifice must we make? If one does not watch or read the news, one is uninformed. If one obtains their talking points from only one source, he or she is misinformed.
Challenge yourself. Strive to listen to varied information. Try not to fall off the edge of your chair planning your next rebuttal. Determine what are the facts, not just the opinions of others that are repeated over and over.
When one attacks the free press, challenges the rule of law and threatens to lock up an opponent, tyranny has reared its ugly head.
I challenge you to listen to your fellow Americans. Work hard my friends, we have a debt to the patriots who have gone before us and the ones who follow.
Dudley Bearden
Columbus
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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