A plea for unity and civility

It's been a bruising election campaign, but the results are in. Joe Biden is the President-elect of the USA. He has called for unity and civility.

But how?

Perhaps unity begins by finding a way to common ground. Perhaps it begins by believing in the good intentions of others. Perhaps it begins with a recommitment to civil discourse.

Most Republican and Democrat voters want fewer poor people in the country. Republicans believe this is best achieved by encouraging private enterprise-driven employment, and through the efforts of church and private charitable endeavours. Democrats see a larger role for the state in supporting the poor and vulnerable. But neither side claims more poor people is their aspiration. They do have that in common.

Most Republican and Democrat voters want fewer abortions in their country. Republicans believe the best way to achieve this is making the procedure illegal or unaffordable, and Democrats believe the best way to achieve this is to make contraception understood, available and affordable - and to make the cost of having and keeping children more accessible. Some see abortion as murder - others see it as an invasive and (often) preventable procedure. But no-one is aiming for more abortions in the country. They do have that in common.

Most Republican and Democrat voters don't want to see people dying because they can't afford life-saving medication (eg insulin). Republicans believe the best way to encourage affordability in health care is greater competition, Democrats believe in greater regulation and government subsidies or insurance. Neither is aiming for premature deaths. They do have that in common.

All Republican and Democrat voters want their children to be safe. Many Republicans believe this is best done by owning a gun to protect their families, while many Democrats believe this is best done by gun control measures. But no-one is aiming for more children to die through gun violence. They do have that in common.

Are there differences in ideology? Yes. Are those differences deep and wide? Yes. But reconciliation is best achieved by beginning with shared aims and values.

Reconciliation is NOT best achieved by labelling, name-calling, or evoking past sins and failures. It must look forward.

Reconciliation must be based on truth, an increasingly challenging task in the fake news era. Finding reliable sources of information, and refusing to share unreliable sources of information, is going to become critical. As more and more foreign players seek to influence the West through false and distorted information (alongside the current vested interests that do so), discernment* is needed by all sides.

As a super-power in every sense, the world looks to the USA for democratic leadership. It has demonstrated once more it can achieve a peaceful transition of power. But its long-term health and strength will be hindered if it falls apart from within.

My prayers are with you USA. Go well.

* "The noun discernment describes a wise way of judging between things, or a particularly perceptive way of seeing things. ... It comes from the Latin word discernere, meaning 'separate.' Discernment separates what's important or true from what's not." Without the skills to sift reliable sources of information from the tsunami of fake videos and articles plaguing the internet, democracy is in serious trouble in my view.