Bear's Blog

What’s REALLY killing us -

Having an either/or mentality will bite you back every time. When making a decision, I often have to jog my thinking to realize there is a continuum of choices available to me. It allows me to consider many variables and access their importance in the bigger picture.

Black and white, us and them, is easier to navigate than a “grey” zone of possibility.

Americans have hardened into debilitating partisanship; each “side” has its own facts, its own reality, and no room for other perspectives. It...

Symbols are powerful things. They are shorthand for what we believe in, and people have died for them - and what they symbolize - throughout history. National flags reflect those identities and values, and flags can also represent other self-defined groups. Pride Month just ended, with lots of flags in evidence of that celebration!

We are now having a national discussion over what flags, signs and monuments exemplify our American ideals. One thing we can all agree on is – the Statue of Liberty! Or can we? Some of our rec...