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Talking with the Enemy

A series to help Americans bridge the bitter red-blue divide.

Latest in the series:
02/10/05 : Opinion
Let's legislate consensus-building
A successful bridge-building process on faith-based public services can be duplicated on other issues.

12/23/04 : Opinion
Gridlock impossible at 'kitchen table'
'Collaborative governance' gives all parties with a stake in a public problem a say in how to resolve it.

11/26/04 : Opinion
Polarized? Not in my backyard
Walking through my red and blue neighborhood, we don't stop to hash out gay marriage.

11/02/04 : Opinion
Talking about 'Talking with the Enemy'
In response to the Monitor's recent series, readers weigh in on America's polarized climate.

10/26/04 : The Monitor's View
The Art of Political Listening
The Monitor's 'Talking With the Enemy' series showed how civil discourse is possible.
Spiritual perspectives:
10/26/04 : A spiritual perspective
What we all have in common
Bringing a spiritual perspective to daily life.
10/25/04 : A spiritual perspective
Bridging a divide
Bringing a spiritual perspective to daily life.
The Public Conversations Project
Want to bridge the divide in your own experience? Public Conversations Project offers a companion guide to this Monitor series.
Feedback:
Tell us about your breakthrough moment in reducing a politically polarized situation.
The original series:
Introduction
Across the red-blue divide
Toning down our opinions will ratchet up our understanding - and the welfare of the nation.
Part 1 of 8
9/11 commission brings heat, but also light
Dinners together, humor, rejecting a lot of advice, and a united front against partisan temptation.
Part 2 of 8
Bush-contempt, Kerry-scorn: Is it 'hate thought'?
Intense anger satisfies a lust for absolute certainty, but it erodes the possibility of political compromise
Part 3 of 8
A political odd couple's advice on finding common ground
Don't demonize your opponents or let them demonize you - ignorance of each other stops discourse.
Part 4 of 8
At heart of good political discussion: the idea
In such a polarized election, how do we even talk? We might take a cue from ... the French.
Part 5 of 8
Nasty politics? Puhleez! Get a historic grip.
Politics for our parents' generation was just as boisterous, nasty, and over the top as it is today for Americans.
Part 6 of 8
We need higher quality outrage
With all the shouting over politics, we have less genuine opposition - the kind that is the bedrock of democracy.
Part 7 of 8
Humanity is not red or blue
A religious leader's view on the American divide: Conflict and civility on an issue are not mutually exclusive.
Part 8 of 8
How to break the argument habit
Whatever side of the blue-red chasm you sit on, dialogue can clear the smoke of polarization obscuring the divide.
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