We are in sore need of healing

Nebraska’s thoughtful and well-spoken U.S. Senator Ben Sasse has released a new book with an important theme and an alarming title: “Them: Why We Hate Each Other—And How To Heal.”
I’ve not read the book yet, so this isn’t a book review. From what I’ve heard, this is a book that explores the lonely isolation of the growing tribalism and alienation that separates us as individuals and neighbors and denies us a shared sense of truth. That sounds like the us versus them mentality with which we have become all too familiar.
Sasse told a Lincoln Journal Star reporter that both of the dominant political parties “feed and profit” off those divisions, “and it’s being swallowed whole by cable news.”
He said 20 years ago that 14 percent of Americans believed the other political party was evil. Today it’s 41 percent.
He advocates for neighborhood and community, emphasizing that getting to know your neighbor two doors down is more satisfying than getting 200 more likes on social media. These are not unusual concepts for most Nebraskans who likely tend to be more neighborly than social media dependent.
I’m not saying that Facebook isn’t a strong influence in the Cornhusker State. Count me among an increasing number of people who have removed the social media app from my smart phone because it’s a big time—suck.
But just look around the next time you’re in a restaurant and see how many people are looking at each other and having conversations as opposed to how many people are staring at their phones.
Speaking of those phones, here’s a good way to understand tribalism, which is described as a strong loyalty and a heavy sense of identity. Android versus iPhone.

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