That 'issue' you're talking about? He's my neighbor

Do people respect each other anymore?

I think about that a lot lately, when I talk to people. When two people agree about one or more issues, everything is fine. When they don't, that's when I start watching. And what I see isn't very appealing. No wonder why our politicians don't work together. Even the simplest disagreements spark ugly conflicts.

I think I'm a fair observer of people. And I watch. From the national politicians down to neighbors, I encounter the same reactions when people agree:

• I don't agree with you, but I'm not going to get into a debate about it. We can agree to disagree. This is the simple form. And honestly, not the most common reaction.
• I don't agree with you, and I've tuned you out for the moment so I can start coming up with my own arguments to try to convince you you're wrong. I'm not listening anymore.
• I don't agree with you. You're completely full of lies and you probably watch CNN or Fox News (whichever I don't watch), and I'm going to resort to my name-calling, put you in a category response.
• I don't agree with you and I've now put you in my category of people to whom I will never talk to about anything of consequence again.

So there. We are running around in little silos, having unproductive arguments or not speaking at all. And while that continues, the problems that impact our neighborhoods, our communities, our nation, our world never get addressed in any way. How does this really look?

Councilman Jones gets on the council. Even though municipal government is supposed to be a non-partisan contest, we all know Councilman Jones comes from "that party," so part of the community won't even start a discussion with him, because he must agree with his part about things like growth, water supply, open space, jobs, transportation, etc. Why even bother opening our mouths, because if we disagree, it will be unproductive. Either a majority of the council agree with my perspective or they don't, why talk about it?

A lot of people in this community are unemployed or underemployed. Having better paying jobs would not only benefit them but the entire tax base. But bringing in more industry would also likely bring in more people, more traffic, and other issues that the leadership doesn't want. So rather than upset the apple cart, the leadership continues to welcome low-paying retail and hospitality businesses to the town. It won't deal with the issues that this choice perpetuates -- the need for affordable housing, community services, young people leaving the area to pursue better employment opportunities, and degradation of neighborhoods.

Thousands of young people begin flooding the borders, crossing into our nation through other than legal challenges, calling themselves refugees. The system is not prepared to handle these individuals. Some people think they should be sent back. Other people believe that our country needs to take steps to protect them, as they fear for their lives in their homeland. Still others believe we need to go fix whatever is happening in their country so they can stop leaving their homeland. The people aren't part of the discussion -- politics, money and external aggression are the cards we play.

At some level, people need to sit down and start talking about what is best for our communities, our citizens, our nation. Cast aside the normal politics and start talking about what is the right decision, long-term: locally, regionally, nationally. And at the same time, start dealing with the here and now. That person who can't get into a reasonably priced apartment or house -- he is my neighbor. That couple who can't find a place to live or work because of an arrest record for which they've already served time, they are my neighbors. That person who has to choose between food and medication -- she is my neighbor. That child who moves to the big city to find a decent job -- she's my neighbor. That young scared teenager who just risked his life to come here from Guatemala -- he's my neighbor.