{"id":14465,"date":"2025-03-12T10:07:35","date_gmt":"2025-03-12T14:07:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?p=14465"},"modified":"2025-03-13T08:58:15","modified_gmt":"2025-03-13T12:58:15","slug":"a-divided-nation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?p=14465","title":{"rendered":"A House Divided"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Recently I had a lengthy discussion with a close friend about the current situation in the United States. Naturally, the conversation was politically charged and primarily centered around a single individual. It\u2019s important to note that, despite our differing political viewpoints, we hardly agreed on anything the other person said. However, our friendship is strong enough to withstand this divergence of opinion. As expected, neither of us changed the other\u2019s mind or perspective during the conversation. Nevertheless, the friendship is stronger than the division of ideas, so we ended the conversation as friends. This incident leads me to the purpose of this article.<\/p>\n

My confusion lies in how two reasonably intelligent individuals can perceive the same person and their actions, leading to diametrically opposed opinions about that person or their intentions. Similarly, I struggle to comprehend how two people can examine the same set of facts and arrive at entirely different conclusions regarding their meaning. It\u2019s evident that this occurs daily, and politics likely stands as the most divisive aspect of our nation. Until we all reach a consensus, we will remain divided. However, disagreeing with anger, name-calling, and violence is not the solution. We possess the strength and intelligence to disagree respectfully. Wouldn\u2019t that be a pleasant outcome?<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been wasting oxygen on this planet for a long time now. Looking back over the years, I don\u2019t recall a time when we seemed so divided as we do today. Perhaps I wasn\u2019t well-informed, or maybe I simply wasn\u2019t paying attention.<\/p>\n

Today, we have an abundance of information that is easily accessible in numerous ways. Thirty years ago, we traveled in our cars, listened to news on our local radio station, and then moved on to other things. The news broadcasts were usually brief, and the news casters reported facts rather than opinions.<\/p>\n

Nowadays, we\u2019re bombarded with information and opinions from all directions. We have twenty-four-hour news channels, or better stated opinion channels and social media platforms where accurate and misleading facts are constantly circulated and repeated, often without any civil discourse. It\u2019s natural for us to hold onto our opinions, even when someone insults us because of them. But that\u2019s a topic for another day.<\/p>\n

\"\"If you\u2019ve read this entire article, eagerly awaiting my solution to this division problem, I regret to inform you that I have nothing to offer. I firmly believe that \u201ca house divided against itself cannot stand.\u201d I comprehend that significant changes are necessary to achieve unity and righteousness, but I am uncertain about the specific path forward. It might be beneficial if some of these changes began at the highest levels and gradually permeated downwards. Additionally, it would be helpful if those we elect to office genuinely fulfilled their responsibilities rather than behaving like entitled children. Furthermore, it would be constructive if we all took a moment to reflect, regroup our thoughts, and be open to the possibility that not everyone shares our perspectives.`<\/p>\n

In conclusion, I can only offer that we try to follow the advice of one infamous individual who says, \u201cCan\u2019t we all just try to get along?\u201d It\u2019s unlikely but hope springs eternal from the human heart. I plan to try harder to understand.\u00a0 Will you?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Recently I had a lengthy discussion with a close friend about the current situation in the United States. Naturally, the conversation was politically charged and primarily centered around a single individual. It\u2019s important to note […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14466,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_daextrevo_audio_file_creation_date":"","_daextrevo_text_to_speech":"","_daextrevo_document_type":"text","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[13,21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14465","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-commentary","category-opinion"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/an-illustration-of-night-and-day.jpeg?fit=200%2C200&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":14395,"url":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?p=14395","url_meta":{"origin":14465,"position":0},"title":"Are we better off?","author":"Tom Lind","date":"December 13, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"I recently made a Facebook post which I will now quote: Do you recall the days when you\u2019d spend hours tuning into the radio, eagerly waiting for your favorite song to come on? Or when you\u2019d call into the station, hoping the DJ would play your song and dedicate it\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Opinion"","block_context":{"text":"Opinion","link":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?cat=21"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/TH-121324.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":14337,"url":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?p=14337","url_meta":{"origin":14465,"position":1},"title":"Let’s Go Vote!","author":"Tom Lind","date":"October 25, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Are you planning to cast your vote? As election day approaches, I find myself increasingly reflecting on the significance of voting in our democratic process. It makes me curious whether those individuals who often voice their dissatisfaction with our country's direction are actively participating in the electoral process themselves. It\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Commentary","link":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?cat=13"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/TH102324.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":14307,"url":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?p=14307","url_meta":{"origin":14465,"position":2},"title":"**60 Years Later** The Epilogue","author":"Tom Lind","date":"September 27, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Last month I wrote of the upcoming 60th class reunion for the McNicholas high School Class of \u201964.\u00a0 The date has come and gone; it is in the history books.\u00a0 Nothing left to do now but remember and hope.\u00a0 Remember the friends we reacquired after all these years and hope\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Commentary","link":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?cat=13"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/TH-09-27.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":517,"url":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?p=517","url_meta":{"origin":14465,"position":3},"title":"Is Big Brother Watching? (Part I)","author":"Tom Lind","date":"July 20, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"It is hard to go anywhere that you are not being video recorded. Between private camera phones, police dashboard cameras, body cameras, neighbor surveillance cameras, and private security cameras, the chances are very good that at many points in time you are captured digitally. Many people are concerned that George\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Commentary","link":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?cat=13"},"img":{"alt_text":"crime camera","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/dallas-pd-crime-camera-150x150.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":22,"url":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?p=22","url_meta":{"origin":14465,"position":4},"title":"Damn double dippers!","author":"Tom Lind","date":"September 8, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Last week's blog received a comment from Anonymous regarding double dippers. For those who have not read the comment I will quote it here for you. Anonymous said \"Maybe they should stop double dipping. Like when employees retire and come back to work in the same City they just retired\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Opinion"","block_context":{"text":"Opinion","link":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?cat=21"},"img":{"alt_text":"Double Dipper","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/doubledip-150x150.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1289,"url":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?p=1289","url_meta":{"origin":14465,"position":5},"title":"Hard Drugs or Not?","author":"Tom Lind","date":"February 28, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Last week I wrote pertaining to the legalization of Marijuana. A poll was taken regarding whether marijuana should be legal, should be legal for medicinal use, or should not be legal at all. The poll results were 84% felt marijuana should be legal for both medical and recreational purposes, 11%\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Commentary"","block_context":{"text":"Commentary","link":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/?cat=13"},"img":{"alt_text":"drug-detox-hard-drugs","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/townehouse.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/drug-detox-hard-drugs-135x150.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p38YRh-3Lj","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14465","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14465"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14465\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14474,"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14465\/revisions\/14474"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/14466"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14465"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14465"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/townehouse.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14465"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}