Political violence in a polarized US is surging, with the past five years of assassinations and attempts on the lives of politicians the highest on records dating back to the 1960s, a Bloomberg Geo-Economic analysis shows https://t.co/HNC3nHjlt8 ...

[Music] I had to make a lastm minute plane change to a different airline and I had to be at the airport to make the change. When I got there, I saw the line I needed to be in and it was one of those long Disney World lines. twisting, turning, endless.I said to myself, I'm going to miss this flight. But then I had an idea. I eased up into the belt barrier. I duck under it and eased toward the front of the line.No one noticed. Well, so I thought, till I saw an agent officer staring right at me. I pretended I ...

Polarization & Its Drivers - Polarization is defined as a movement towards extremes, eroding the moderate center where common ground is typically found [2] - The increasing polarization in society is not primarily driven by policy differences, but by profound differences in emotional understanding, specifically one's affective sense of the world [6][12] - Fear, as a primal emotion, is a significant driver of these divisions, influencing individuals' sense of safety and danger [8] Mitigation Strategies: The Three C's - The industry suggests a three-pronged approach to mitigate polarization: Connect, Curate, and Cultivate [13] - Connect: Emphasizes connecting to one's ethics and values such as integrity, dignity, honesty, and kindness [13] - Curate: Advocates for curating exposure to information, particularly on social media, which is identified as a causal factor in conflict due to algorithms designed to maximize engagement through moral outrage [14][15] - Cultivate: Highlights the importance of community, compassion, curiosity, and appreciation, encouraging individuals to engage in conversations with those holding differing viewpoints [17] The Role of Social Media - Research indicates that social media is not merely correlated with conflict but is causal, driven by algorithms and corporate interests that prioritize engagement through moral outrage [14][15] - Social media algorithms are designed to keep users engaged by tapping into deep-seated fears and presenting the world as a dangerous place, rewarding moral outrage [16] Connection & Empathy - Finding emotional empathy and connecting with others on emotional realities, even without agreeing on facts, is key to navigating polarized times [18][19] - Listening first and finding common ground are crucial for meaningful connection and appreciation, even when coming from different standpoints [17][18]

[Music] Welcome Fala. Welcome to the TEDex stage. Happy to have you here. >> Happy to be here.>> Right. So u I was introduced to your comics at uh an indie comics fest in Bangalore I think and uh it was really surprising cuz I picked it up and I didn't expect it to be so funny. Right.So I'm sure everybody here would love to hear a lot more about your comics, your creation process. So let's get into it. So um in your comics you uh the themes that mainly stand out to me are identity, faith, belonging.So how d ...

We'll start with some politics in America and Republican Congressman and US C Senate candidate Barry Moore of Alabama becoming the latest lawmaker to be confronted by furious constituents at a town hall. Moore held an event in Daphne, Alabama last night that quickly went off the rails forcing him to leave in the middle of taking questions. The first question that we have is from Katherine Quinnley from Farho.They want to know who pays the tariff. Is it consumers or a true the exporting country. So right now ...

Core Argument - The core issue is the disconnect between citizens and their government, stemming from the fixed size of the House of Representatives [1][2][3] - The proposal is to uncap the House of Representatives and return to a system where its size expands with the population, aiming for a ratio of one representative per 400,000 people [16][17] Historical Context & Problem Definition - The House of Representatives was originally designed to be the "people's house," providing access to power for the average citizen [5][6] - For 120 years, the House expanded with the population, but a hard cap of 435 members was established in 1930 [7][9] - In 1930, one member of Congress represented just under 300,000 people; now, it's one member for every 800,000 citizens [9] - This increase in constituency size leads to representatives focusing on factions and special interests rather than the broader community [12][13][14] - Large congressional districts contribute to voter disengagement and a shift of power to the executive branch [14][15] Proposed Solution & Expected Outcomes - Uncapping the House would lead to approximately 881 members of Congress, based on a ratio of 400,000 people per representative [19] - A smaller playing field would foster more diverse membership in Congress, including third-party representation and diversity of political thought [20][21] - Expanding the House would mitigate the electoral college dilemma, reducing the disparity in voting power between states like Wyoming and California from 6:1 to 25:1 [22][23][24][25][26] - With 881 pieces, gerrymandering would become more difficult to execute, promoting fairer representation [27][28][29]

As political power is becoming more sharply distributed geographically and intensified by polarisation, Republican politicians are increasingly overruling, or “pre-empting”, policies in Democratic cities https://t.co/safqAy6QBt ...

In 2024, only 37 House races were decided by less than 5 points. 235 were landslides of 25+ points. That erodes accountability and fuels polarization, writes @RonBrownstein (via @opinion) https://t.co/caU126pERY ...

Strategies for Respectful Disagreement - Locate disagreements on the controversy scale, ranging from tastes to equal humanity, acknowledging the other side's perspective [1][19] - Find uncommon commonalities to overcome the assumption of complete disagreement [5][20] - Show your work by explaining the experiences, research, and doubts that have shaped your view [12][13][14][20] - Manage expectations by scaling the intensity of agreement to the intensity of the relationship [15][16][17][21] Key Concepts - The legal profession exemplifies disagreeing respectfully, viewing opponents as "friends on the other side" [1] - Disagreeing respectfully is a crucial skill in an increasingly complex and polarized society [1][22] - Acknowledging the other side's position on the controversy scale can transform the conversation [1][19] - The "epic handshake meme" illustrates finding unexpected common ground [6][7][8] - It's important to distinguish oneself from past, less thoughtful conversations by showing your work [13][20]

Political System Analysis - America's two-party system, traditionally a barrier against extremism, is now accelerating it due to polarization [1]