As a retired mental health professional, I follow the political divide in our country with great interest. This Sunday’s editorial contained a very important message: Saving our democracy from lies will require hard work and discerning minds (“In Our View: Biden’s call for action, leadership rings true,” The Columbian, Jan. 23).
I believe the word “discerning” holds the key to understanding the other side. In simple terms, discernment is nothing more than the ability to decide between truth and error, right or wrong. George Will writes, “It’s time to grow up” (The Columbian, Jan. 24). He concludes that “mending the social fabric is the responsibility of those who helped fray it.”
The dictionary also defines discernment as “without providing for a time of healing and discernment, there will be no hope of living through the present moment without a shattering of our common life.”
My hope for the future is that we elect leaders who are mature, responsible adults, with a moral compass, not infants longing to have their egos fed and self-esteem inflated by appealing to whatever group feeds their narcissistic personalities. It truly is time to grow up.
