We live in an amazing time. Information streams in, at, and around us constantly. Frankly, it gives most of us anxiety and indigestion.

With the 24 hour news channels gearing up for the 2016 race, we are already seeing the beginnings of the futile, polarized, over-hashed struggle that is the american proxy-fight of liberal-left and conservative-right.

The racial uprisings, the planned parenthood controversy, the anger-fueled tragic shootings we can barely bring ourselves to truly see. Each one of these, over and over, will be utterly mishandled in the american media.

And you know what, it’s our fault. We let the media determine the alternatives.

What do the statements:

“Planned Parenthood is coercing mothers into abortions and carving up their baby parts for profit!”

and

“Planned Parenthood is an upstanding community organization without whose contributions communities would sorely suffer.”

Have in common?

They’re both false, and they both contain a grain of truth.

We allow that tiny hint of truth amid a host of invalid, unwarranted connotation to marshal us to our sides, plugging our ears to the arguments streaming out of the others that would and could help us tune ourselves into the whole, real, actual truth.

We not only allow it, we encourage it by taking the bait.

It’s only after the internet has exploded with vitriol than anyone wants to hear a balanced, reasoned stance, and even then, it’s a minority who look for it.

Need another example?

What about headlines like:

“Cops slay yet another unarmed black man in routine traffic stop.”

that unleash thousands of individuals screaming about corrupt cops and incite our rage? How many of these articles truly do due diligence in reporting the nuances of the situation? Of the cop’s particular background? incorporating witnesses? How often are videos edited and facts twisted?

Do we ever think about the fact that we don’t ever see headlines that say “Cops successfully maintain the peace.”?

We don’t because it’s not news, and we forget about this when we focus on the corruptions that lead to tragedy. This serves to tie the hands of the police force, and to de-motivate every good cop on the streets, as their entire profession is demonized and hated.

We don’t talk about proactive, multi-sided solutions like more strenuous firearm training and psychological support for the police.

And we don’t admit that even though Black Lives Matter, and even though we’re obviously a lot more racist and oppressive than we ever truly knew, and even though that needs to change, so does the culture of defiance to authority and entitlement that permeates many impoverished black communities if we are to move forward. I bet both sides are always thinking “You first.”

Some people are saying Donald Trump is the candidate we deserve. Fair enough.

WE allow ourselves to be baited by the catchy and the inflammatory rather than the well considered, the vetted, and the thoughtful.

We allow this devolution, we magnify it, and we fail to help it stop.

We probably all have access to people who think differently than we do. If you don’t have any friends who disagree with you, you might be a big part of the problem.

When you talk about people getting into arguments on the internet, most people roll their eyes and stay away, saying it inevitably devolves into chaos and name calling.

It doesn’t have to. It does because we let it. It’s not some immutable law of internet-being.

When people think about talking about religion or politics they’re told not to at dinner or on first dates, but what could be more important than test-driving your opinions and conclusions and trying to learn from what someone else has to say?

As long as all we want is to have our beliefs confirmed, our broken political system actually represents us very, very well.

If we want to start having real conversations about how to make the world a better place, we all have to start by listening to what it is those who disagree with us actually want.

Everyone involved in the Planned Parenthood debate can agree that we’d like to kill fewer babies.

Everyone who’s paying attention can see that we need to work on inter-racial relations.

Everyone can see that we need to support mental health.

Everyone can see that the world is hurting so much for comfort, understanding, and acceptance.

Everyone can see that completely disarming a population puts them at the mercy of their military, and everyone can see that selling guns to criminals or the mentally ill is a bad idea.

Why does no politician or news outlet frame these issues this way?

Charleston wasn’t about the appropriateness of the confederate flag, nor was it about gun control or gun rights. It was a tragic situation that everyone in the country should consider.

Consider in our souls how we house and harbor hatred. Consider the things we ignore that we shouldn’t. Consider racism, bullying, ignorance, and complacence. And most importantly, consider practical ways to help stem the violence.

Can we stop only paying attention to the most absurd, irrelevant forms of issues as they’re put to us by those who are paid-by-click, and start asking each other questions and learning to negotiate the future?

If we don’t, who will?

Fight your friends on facebook. Learn how to debate. See where your arguments are flawed. See where they succeed. See where you can get through to, and find common ground with those who vote differently than you.

These are the steps down the road to a truly different future.

Let’s try to take them together.