If you’ve been reading this column for the past few weeks, you may have noticed my thoughts have been in one lane. I’ve been captured by the reality of just how divided we are as a nation, as families, as neighbors. And this division has made itself known through a dangerous rise of incivility, violent actions carried out in the guise of helpful, necessary change, and even publicly declared desires for opponents to be murdered.  

So, perhaps it is time to ask: Why are we so divided? I’m sure you can come up with some reasons we’re becoming more and more divided, but here are my suggestions. 

1. The wealth we enjoy has severely eroded the fabric of our interdependence. Historically, when societies were agrarian, it took a community to eke out a living on the farm. Married couples relied on their children and neighbors to clear land, plow fields, plant crops, bring in the harvest, and build barns, fences, and other necessary structures to make a living.  

Farming and ranching communities were dependent on the community to make things work. Their lives were dependent on one another. The same was true for the smaller settlements, as farming technology allowed some to become shopkeepers and tradesmen. Yet the interdependence of these communities was evident, as farmers would barter their grain for supplies from merchants. People needed........

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