It was the latest offense taken by an American political tribe. In 2018, Pete Davidson, a Saturday Night Live comedian, made an insensitive joke about a congressman’s eye patch, followed by an irreverent comment about the man’s war injury. Dan Crenshaw, Texas Congressman and Iraq veteran, became a political celebrity as conservatives told us how Davidson’s comments represented left-wing depravity. SNL then invited Crenshaw to the next episode, to reconcile with Davidson before a live studio audience. Crenshaw appeared with Davidson, and each man showed a humility and respect for the other, appealing to unity through humor and duty. Despite any politics or ill-advised jokes, the power of being able to relate to each other was evident, and America seemed to have a moment of solidarity.

David French, a columnist now with the New York Times, covered the event with words I’ve never forgotten: “There’s a market for grace in American politics.” Noting the millions of YouTube views, it appeared people wanted to see this kind of resolution, like a medicine no one knew we needed. Indeed, there was a market for grace, like a shop opening on the thoroughfares of American discourse, with patrons stopping to look around. French captured the moment with these words, and I’ve taken inspiration from it ever since. I’ve wondered how to catch such lightning in a bottle – cultivating an environment that offers respect and understanding to different perspectives. It’s daunting to think about, but there it was on SNL for the world to see.

With such ideals in mind, the aim of this blog is to have a place where points of view are discussed with an earnest pursuit of active listening. This means hearing one’s opinion and summarizing their views as accurately as we can. It means making a good faith attempt to understand why others believe what they do, no matter how much we would disregard, scoff at, or cringe at what they’re saying. It means aggressively striving to avoid Strawmen and Ad Hominem attacks. And it means that my primary goal isn’t so much to be right, but to find understanding. And I think the depth of topics will go far beyond politics. Consider religion. Culture. The books we read. The laws we obey, and the families we raise. Maybe, just maybe, reasonable people can walk away from this blog on good terms.

Still, all of this begs a question: How does someone listen through blogging? Don’t writers just spit out opinions to the world to respond in anger? Blogs are about expression, and so no doubt, my posts will have opinions. Some stronger than others, and some smarter than others. I’ll share when I think something is wrong, or even dangerously wrong. But if I can summarize other opinions, making the good faith effort to present with fairness what others believe, then the hope of this blog will be fulfilled. That’s active listening.

Fortunately for me, David French recently gave a great example of active listening through writing. When discussing the politics of America’s future financial support for the wars in Ukraine and Israel, French gave the following thoughts:

“I understand both the good-faith right-wing objections to Ukraine aid and the good-faith progressive calls for a cease-fire in Israel. Ukraine needs an extraordinary amount of American support for a war that has no end in sight. It’s much easier to rally the west when Ukraine is on the advance. It’s much harder to sustain American support in the face of grinding trench warfare, the kind of warfare that consumes men and material at a terrifying pace.

I also understand that it is hard to watch a large-scale bombing campaign in Gaza that kills civilians, no matter the precision of each individual strike. Much like ISIS in Mosel, Hamas has embedded itself in the civilian population. It is impossible to defeat Hamas without harming civilians, and each new civilian death is a profound tragedy, one that unfolds in front of a watching world. It’s a testament to our shared humanity that one of our first instincts when we see such violence is to say, “Please, just stop.”

And there you have it. French wrote a succinct summary of two political views without endorsing either. Conservatives can be understood here to have a reasonable question about the Ukraine war, without the belief that they’re fond of dictators or in bed with Russia. Meanwhile, college students can be seen as having an understandable lament for Palestinians without the belief that they’re promoting mass murder. We can strongly disagree with views while having an understanding for their reasons, and this is the writing that I hope to achieve.

Along with reviews of opinions, I want to celebrate active listening in general. I want to praise it when it’s done, and to note it when it’s not happening in a situation. I want to articulate an individual’s point of view as best I can, even when there is fault in their actions. This isn’t to excuse the failings of criminals or divas, or the mean people of our lives that we’d like to go away. But there is a flip side to every coin, and I want to look at them all. As Phil Collins expressed in the lyrics of a song: “We always need to hear both sides of the story.” For the pursuit of truth, empathy, and knowledge, this is what we’ll be doing on this blog.

With this, I’m excited to share opinions while working to build a market for grace through active listening. It’s a lofty goal, and one that the internet doesn’t seem designed for. And whether from my impatience or illogic, I’m bound to fall short in having generosity. We all do. But this doesn’t mean the goals of active listening aren’t worth pursuing. Knowledge, empathy, a greater unity with our fellow man, and so on. So whether you continue with the blog or stop right here, I hope you’ll join me in trying to achieve these things in life.