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One thing I celebrate every day is how fortunate I am to live on the South Oregon Coast. My quality of life is very high. Nothing beats beach time.

But life could be better.
Renown Psychoanalyst Esther Perel (https://www.estherperel.com) says:
"Quality of life depends on the quality of human relationships."
I have to admit that since 2016 I’ve experienced more and more antagonism in my relationships. We left our church because of politics from the pulpit.

The issue is especially prominent with members of my community that I don’t count as direct friends. There are people I know, do business with, who live nearby that I just don’t understand.
As a Ronald Regan voter, conservative by nature – I’m prone to voting against taxes, no matter the need. I worry about the cost of healthcare, mourn for people with disabilities that lack support and, honestly, I fear getting too old to live affordably.
I’d like to talk about how to go about discovering what underpins our social conflict. Why do so many citizens flirt with anti-democratic views?
What happened to Christian Charity and tolerance? Or is it just me? Something went wrong and I don’t see it?
The desire to improve social relationships in our community is felt by quite a few of us in the political middle. We’re burned out, sick and tired of the acrimony. Too many of us have stepped quietly to the sidelines. It’s just easier to not argue.
It’s hugely important to our culture that citizens do their duty. There are many possible levels of participation but the essential bit is voting. A large number of us have simply disengaged, we’re failing to vote. Or we vote lazily – avoiding the conflict and not taking time to understand the issues.