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The Challenge: read an article a day from both a "progressive" and a "conservative" view.
The Goal: Learn how to navigate the messy middle with compassion, and to communicate and articulate the truth you find in between.
In a world that is increasingly polarized, both my son, Finn, and myself often find ourselves caught in between two very different views. With the proliferation of media outlets catering to one view or the other, it is very easy to find yourself in a silo or an echo chamber, hearing only the views that mimic your own. This makes it difficult to understand, let alone respect, those with opposing views. In many respects, this is a luxury - you don't have to think critically, after all, everyone else in your various circles have the same view.
Not being able to afford this luxury, I have given us the challenge to explore the divide. While there are some truths that are undeniable - black and white - many "truths" are relative - relative to your upbringing, neighborhood, culture, etc. In essence the world is full of varying shades of gray.
The middle is messy and uncomfortable, but we believe that it's the only way to move forward and repair the breach.
Welcome to our blog and our navigation of the messy middle.
Recently people have been saying a lot of audacious things in media about the side they oppose. It seems that some news outlets are more focused on insulting the other party than actually telling news. Truth is no longer a factor but just a buzzword being thrown around to justify attacking people who look, act, or think differently than the people telling the story.
The moment the truth becomes a means to an end instead of a key factor in any form of communication is the moment things start to become ugly for all involved. I believe this is truly the highest injustice that one could do to the American public.
Now I cannot promise you, that you will agree with everything that is posted on this website. It will be the truth as I see it, and I welcome you sharing your truths and us moving through the middle together, with respect and dignity.
Finn and I will both, separately, be writing our own blogs on what we find to be the "truth in between" - [truth].
We welcome comments, feedback and productive dialogue. In this effort of finding the "truth in between", we hope engage in compassionate and diplomatic dialogue that expands and enhances understanding.
In our attempt to navigate the chaos, we have collected a go-to list of resources where we are exploring different views. This list is not exhaustive, and we are continuously adding new resources. We welcome your suggestions.
Progressive News Sites/Organizations
1. MSNBC – msnbc.com
2. Democracy Now – democracynow.org
3. Truth Out – truthout.org
4. The Guardian – theguardian.co.uk
5. Crooks and Liars – crooksandliars.com
6. Truth Dig – truthdig.com
7. The Nation – thenation.com
8. Mother Jones – motherjones.com
9. Michael Moore – michaelmoore.com
10. Counter Punch – counterpunch.org
11. The Young Turks – theyoungturks.com
12. AlterNet – alternet.org
13. Think Progress – thinkprogress.org
14. Tom Hartmann – tomhartmann.com
15. The Huffington Post
16. Move On – moveon.org
17. Salon – salon.com
18. Forward Progressives – forwardprogressives.com
19. Daily Kos – dailykos.com
20. The Progressive – theprogressive.org
Conservative News Sites/Organizations
1. Fox news – foxnews.com
2. Breitbart – breitbart.com
3. Conservative Tribune – conservativetribune.com
4. The Hill – thehill.com
5. Drudge Report – drudgereport.com
6. Western Journalism – westernjournalism.com
7. WND – wnd.com
8. Zero Hedge – zerohedge.com
9. Daily Caller – dailycaller.com
10. Daily Wire – dailywire.com
11. BizPac Review – bizpacreview.com
12. The Blaze – theblaze.com
13. National Review – nationalreview.com
14. Real Clear Politics – realclearpolitics.com (both)
15. News Max – newsmax.com
16. Washington Examiner – washingtonexaminer.com
17. Independent Journal Review – ijr.com (red/blue)
18. Young Conservative – youngcons.com
19. The Federalist – thefederalist.com
20. National Interest – nationalinterest.org
21. American Thinker – americanthinker.com
22. Cato Institute – cato.org
23. Hoover Institute – hoover.org
24. Michelle Malkin – michellemalkin.com
Other Information Outlets
Skeptical Science - skepticalscience.com
Medium - medium.com
The Knife Media - theknifemedia.com
The Rubin Report - rubinreport.com
TED Talks - ted.com
Books Currently on our Reading List
Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan
Nicolo Machiavelli, The Prince
Nigel Warburton, A Little History of Philosophy
Kim R. Holmes, The Closing of the Liberal Mind: How Group Think and Intolerance Define the Left
Yuval Levin, The Fractured Republic: Renewing America’s Social Contract in the Age of Individualism
Lawrence W. Reed, Excuse Me Professor: Challenging the Myths of Progressivism
Kristian Williams, Our Enemies in Blue: Police and Power in America
Michael Woraich, Unreasonable Men: Theodore Roosevelt and Republican Rebels Who Created Progressive Politics
Bob Goff, Love Does: Discover a Secretly Incredible Life in an Ordinary World
J.D. Vance, Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis
Daniel Kahneman, Thinking, Fast and Slow
Thomas Sowell, Disrimination and Disparities
Johnathan Haidt, The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion
Brene Brown, Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alon
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