Closing thoughts as the race comes to a close...

I have deep convictions about what is right in the up-coming US Presidential race. And while I am studiously non-partisan in my role as church pastor, privately I am vigorously pro-Obama and have no difficulty sharing the many reasons why I hold this conviction with those who ask (but you have to ask because most of the time I'm either prayerful about the whole thing or... laughing like this Jib Jab.)

That said, I often lament the ways campaigns fuel the culture wars and seek to polarize rather than unite. I know, I know... that is part of the nature of partisan politics and I confess I appreciate our politics for what they offer. Still, they are incomplete - often mean-spirited - and not where I choose to spend most of my time or creativity. One of my new artist friends in the Berkshires, a talented pianist and writer, Jessica Roemischer, who has played some gigs with us at church recently sent me the following note with a link to an interview she recently conducted with Don Beck which starts out:

As I’ve watched the presidential campaign unfold in my living room, I’ve become increasingly unsettled by the cultural schism it’s revealing. Robo-calls from John McCain, caustic opinion pieces on Sarah Palin (often by women), FOX news, MSNBC, negative campaigning—Left and Right. In this highly charged atmosphere, it’s been difficult to make sense of things. I’ve even questioned my longstanding allegiance to the Democratic Party, which has made it challenging to find common ground with friends I’ve known for years. In search of a different perspective on the election, I was compelled to seek out global activist, Dr. Don E. Beck, whom I interviewed in 2002 for What is Enlightenment? Magazine.

For over forty years, Don Beck has worked to facilitate social change in some of the world’s most polarized environments—notably apartheid South Africa during the 1980’s and ‘90’s, and currently in Israel/Palestine. Don Beck really gets human beings and our widely varying habitats and worldviews. With striking clarity and a disarming optimism, he illuminates the rich and complex mosaic of cultures, as he presents practical solutions to seemingly intractable problems—terrorism, the Iraq War, the AIDS epidemic. Beck’s unique perspective—the basis of the evolutionary theory called Spiral Dynamics—allows him to craft effective protocols where others fail.

Don Beck is a social scientist of a different order. For that reason he has advised world leaders such as Nelson Mandela and F.W. deKlerk; he has met with Tony Blair’s cabinet and with the Mexican government, among many others. I knew we needed his view in America at this critical juncture. In response to my request, Don graciously granted the following interview. True to form, he goes to the heart of the matter—and our divided nation—as he reveals how our next president can emerge as the truly new kind of leader we so urgently need.

I don't affirm everything Don says but appreciate his perspective and insight... and in the closing days of this race thought you might, too. If you would like to read more, please go to: http://jessicaroemischer.blogspot.com/

And who can forget THESE great guys who made the most out of the Florida debacle in 2000?