Why We Can’t “Just All Get Along”: Dysfunction in the Polity and Conflict Resolution and What We Might Do About It

These are very troubled times. The polity is seriously divided; people who march for white supremacy and hate are called “nice and very good people” by an unhinged, but Constitutionally elected, President; relations between citizens of color and police are at a high level of hostility and distrust; Congress is unable to pass virtually any legislation; and policy differences over immigration, trade, taxation, and health care are so great that even a ruling party cannot get anything done. Perhaps the greatest challenge for our democracy now is learning how to deal with great value differences in the polity, enough so that we can make progress on modern challenges of poverty and inequality, health care, work, wages and welfare policies, immigration, education, and environmental change, to name just a few difficult issues.