I listen to the news. So many angry cries: "My way is better!" and "I alone can fix this if you elect me!" "Those other people have it all wrong!" The discussion is uncompromising. Everyone seems to be dug in. It does not feel like we are a united people.
Feeling despondent, I picked up a little booklet given to me by a friend who recently immigrated to the U.S. It makes for terrific reading, and I recommend it to everyone: The Constitution of the United States.
Just 20 or so pages long, the Constitution is a rule book for governing cooperatively through compromise and power-checking. It provides guidance for negotiation and resolution. Even after more than two centuries, its deliberate and careful systems show us a way to find common ground.
Our Constitution begins:
"We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union..." This acknowledges how difficult being united can seem at times.