CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE: LENT A TIME TO FIND PEACE, EVEN IN THE FACE OF ADVERSITY
As the Lent season begins for Christians around the globe, Pope Benedict preached to Catholics that they must take this time to struggle to do good and promote justice, even though it is very difficult. He cited the Bible and concluded with a prayer for peace in the world:
“Let us ask Him for the strength to bear witness to the same feelings of peace and reconciliation that inspired Him on the Sermon on the Mount, in order to achieve eternal Beatitude.”
Question to the Blogosphere: There have been other times when certain ceremonies or holidays in religious practice have been used to promote peace between warring groups, do you think it is wise to use religion to combat conflict and find common ground? Can you think of other instances when this tactic has been used? To which conflicts do you think the Pope is referring in his call to promote justice in the world? Where would this tactic be less successful? Do you think Pope Benedict could become a useful person to bring into conflicts when there is a need to search for common ground, or are most of the conflicts between traditionally non-Christian societies?
RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY: COMMON GROUND ON LANGUAGE IN THE BALKANS?
In one of the bloodiest conflicts to hit Europe since WWII, the source of the violence in the Balkans was nationalism and its spread throughout the six republics after Josip Tito died in 1980. In more recent years, the violence of the conflict has ended in most areas (with serious exceptions) and one of the ways the parties to the conflict can communicate and establish common ground is through their eerily similar languages. Yet nationalisms still remain and are protected. Therefore, according to Ljudmila Cvetkovic and Goran Vezic ofRFE/RLthe fact that people from the different Balkan states are mutually intelligible is not as much of a common ground point because they insist that they do not have this in common in order to protect their sense of apartness–through nationalism, religion, and language. Besides logistical problems that result from this conflict, including redundant printing of books in very similar dialects, the discussion of language in the Balkans may entrench divisions between these hostile nations.
Question to the Blogosphere: Do you think that there are considerable differences between Croatian and Serbian? Do you think this issue reflects underlying residual tensions from the conflict in the 1990s or is it more benign?
THE NEW YORK TIMES: BLOGGERS AND UNIONS JOIN FORCES TO PUSH DEMOCRATS
A group of bloggers, union activists and MoveOn.org are said to be forming a political action committee to push Democrats more to the Left. Bloggers are soliciting their readers for money to get more liberal Democrats in office to replace the more Centrist ones in place now.
Question to the Blogosphere: Is the fact that these different actors in politics are coming together and finding common ground a good thing for the United States? How viable is this union, are there other interests that will keep the group together?
BBC NEWS: HAMAS AND FATAH MEET IN EGYPT TO SEARCH FOR COMMON GROUND
Leaders of the rival political factions Hamas and Fatah have opened reconciliation talks with the goal of creating a unity government for all Palestinians. The two sides agreed to release detainees and vow not to attack each other in the media. Solving this rift is necessary for any hope of successful negotiations between Palestinians and Israelis. Hamas continues to be a strain on this unity because they refuse to recognize Israel. Therefore, when the US, EU, or Israel wants to negotiate with a united Palestinian delegation they cannot because of the presence of a radical group like Hamas. The fundamental difference between Fatah and Hamas is their approach towards Israel. Fatah has renounced violance while Hamas reserves its right to fight Israel.
Question to the Blogosphere: What are the pros and cons of including Hamas in the Palestinian delegation? It is possible to find enough common ground between Fatah and Hamas to be able to successfully negotiate with Israel without Israel leaving the table? What concessions to do you think Fatah and Hamas are willing to make in order to reach a solution? What do you think is the core impasse facing the Palestinians in their search for common ground?
INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE: COMMON GROUND ON HEALTH CARE FROM A SMALL SENATE OFFICE
Big insurance companies, lobbyists for consumers, doctors, hospitals and pharmaceutical companies have finally reached enough consensus to declare that comprehensive health care legislation should include a requirement that every American carry insurance. The consensus has allowed this motley group of actors to focus on what’s next: how to enforce the requirement for everyone to have health insurance; how to make insurance affordable to the uninsured; and whether to require employers to help buy coverage for their employees. This set of negotiations on the future of health care differs from those during the Clinton administration because the health insurance companies are not demonized but brought into the negotiations.
Question to the Blogosphere: Does including the health insurance companies in discussions over the future of health care in the United States mean that the policies created by this group will be more lasting than efforts in the past? The meetings of this diverse group were conducted in secret, why do you think that is important? Is it? What other issues are affected by the type of health care reform this group advocates? (immigration, children without parents)
THE HUFFINGTON POST: REASONS FOR THE POLAR, PARTISAN CONGRESS
In Bob Burnett’s article on The Future of Bipartisanship, he analyzes the reasons for the decline of cooperation and common ground between Democrats and Republicans–why only 3 Republicans voted for the Stimulus. He cites Bill Ury’s Getting to Yes when he opines that Republicans tend to be hard negotiators and Democrats tend to be soft negotiators. He argues that there are three reasons for this polarity during a time when it is necessary to unite the country against a common economic problem.
1. Structural Explanation: Most of the GOP Senators and Representatives who voted against Obama’s stimulus package come from red states or congressional districts. Those who voted with the President were from states he carried during the 2008 Election.
2. Historical Explanation: Polarization increased during the Bush Administration. Bush and Cheney were hard negotiators and their style worked in Bush’s first term where he got everything he wanted: massive tax cuts, education reform, curtailment of civil liberties, and war with Iraq. Many Congressional Republicans continue to bask in the “glow” of the Bush era and believe the negotiating style that worked then will work now.
3. Psychological Explanation: Conservatives and liberals have different worldviews–“Strict Parent” (rule-based) vs. “Nurturant Parent” (process-based) attitudes, respectively.
Question to the Blogosphere: Can Obama unite this divided Congress? What steps should be taken to build common ground among people so clearly divided over the past eight years?
