Larry D. Lauer

Today’s increasing stress between the various levels of American society deeply concerns me. We often seem to be blind to the dependence we all have on each other. It seems so obvious to me that we must all work more constructively together in order to fulfill the idea of America. Endless demonizing and polarizing just has to be counterproductive to our own “equal opportunity for everyone” ideal.

The announcement of Paul Ryan as Mitt Romney’s running mate could signal a desperately needed new day in an otherwise destructively negative presidential campaign. Now both sides have a renewed opportunity to offer a clear choice, and with it an opportunity to stay focused on the positives of both ideologies. Up to now the political rhetoric on both sides has been dangerously widening the gap between Wall Street and Main Street, thereby reinforcing growing divisions between the wealthy, middle class, labor, and the poor. 

What makes this even more disturbing is that extreme polarizing tendencies also seem to be infecting some of our organizations and institutions. Even inside many businesses (i.e. the airlines), intense conflicts seem to be solidifying between executive management, middle management, and those that deliver customer services. And even in many universities, gaps have significantly widened between administrations, faculties, and their trustees. Each situation has its own characteristics, but what has become all too common is this tendency for groups to become more consistently polarized.

Conflict between groups such as these gets worse when constant debating and ranting only strengthens self-centered positions, when each group isolates itself professionally and socially from the other for extended periods of time, and when the news media finds that theses conflicts can be the kind of news that makes attention-getting headlines every day.  Relentless and consistent attack-driven communication can dangerously split our society, our businesses, and our institutions, and can over time threaten our way of life.

The very idea of America is predicated on a different kind of democratic principle, and a more constructive approach to debating differences… or so it seems to me. It is true that everybody is free to express strong opinions and positions anytime and anywhere they wish. But it also seems obvious to me that everyone must also ultimately share the responsibility for constructive citizenship, and determined conflict resolution. 

I have found through working with institutions and universities that every part of every organization and every society is ultimately dependent on the other parts for genuine progress. One area cannot function well without all the others functioning well too.  Orchestrating progress therefore means planning ways to move all units ahead collaboratively. They are mutually interdependent, and it’s just too destructive to allow bitter infighting to continue beyond a reasonable period of aggressive, but also mutually respectful, debate.