Entries in the 'New Publications' Category

“A Way To Reverse Dismal Prediction Of Cyclical Pandemics” (Newsmax)


My article in Newsmax: “A Way to Reverse Dismal Prediction of Cyclical Pandemics

Sally Davies, former chief medical officer for England, wrote on The Guardian that “COVID-19 is neither the first nor the last health emergency we will face. My fellow scientists estimate that we will face a pandemic or health emergency at least once every five years from here on. There is a chance that this is the optimistic scenario. The reality could be far worse.”

I think the prediction is both good news and bad news. It is good news because scientists are beginning to realize that the pandemic isn’t a one-time event, but part of a permanent process of change. At the same time, it is bad news because scientists have no clue as to what to do about it. They offer dubious solutions to mitigate the destruction these crises will inflict on humanity, but they have no idea how to prevent them, how to reverse the dismal trajectory, and they don’t even think in that direction.

Are we then doomed to suffer from here on? No, we’re not. By strengthening our solidarity, we can reverse the trajectory and prevent such crises from happening altogether.

In 2015, Julianne Holt-Lunstad, renowned neuroscientist and psychologist at Brigham Young University, published an extensive analysis that looked into the influence of social isolation, loneliness and living alone on people’s health. The results were notable in light of today’s pandemic. She found that social isolation “led to an increased rate of mortality of twenty-nine per cent, and living alone by thirty-two per cent — no matter the subject’s age, gender, location or culture.” (The New Yorker published on March 23.)

In a recent interview for the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, Holt-Lunstad said that being socially active “not only prolongs our life expectancy, but also influences our health in other ways, such as resistance to viruses” (translated from Hebrew).

In the interview, Holt-Lunstad also referred to a Carnegie Mellon University study that found that people with many solid social ties have a better immune system and better resistance to viruses of the common cold, while people with few social ties were significantly more vulnerable. The researcher stressed that while we should not disobey authorities’ instructions regarding social distancing and wearing masks, we should make a conscious effort to maintain social ties under these limitations.

These conclusions coincide with what I have been saying since the beginning of the outbreak, but there are more conclusions to be drawn from these findings. I think we shouldn’t take a passive approach here but rather be much more proactive. Viruses have been around long before the COVID-19 outbreak. We could have been infected long ago but we weren’t because our immune system was stronger.

Especially over the last several decades, we have been growing increasingly isolated, and therefore weaker. This isolation is part of what researchers Jean Marie Twenge and William Keith Campbell call “a narcissism epidemic.” In their aptly titled book The Narcissism Epidemic: Living in the Age of Entitlement, they establish that over the past few decades, we have seen an exponential growth in narcissistic tendencies among young people and the general population.

In simple words, we are growing far more egoistic than before, far more quickly than before, and therefore far more lonely. By doing so, we are weakening our immune system and exposing ourselves to health threats that didn’t use to pose any risk before. This is why I keep saying that we will not find a vaccine or a cure for the coronavirus since even if we find something for this plague, another, even worse menace will quickly replace it. Now, finally, medicine corroborates.

If we want to protect ourselves from viruses and other forms of natural crises, we have to work on our social cohesion, on our relations with each other, on our solidarity as a society, and in our communities. This is not a theoretical assumption; it is a practical measure we must take in order to protect ourselves and our loved ones from getting sick and dying or remaining maimed.

How we relate to one another, how we build our social networks, what we project to others, and what values we install in society all have a real impact on our health. Well-connected people are not only much happier; they are also much healthier.

Next time we want to trash someone on social media or even to our friends, we should think twice before doing so; it will backfire on us. And after we stop trashing, let’s start building a positive society, one that values caring and helping out. Let’s not be selfish; it simply doesn’t pay.

Discover a new worldview during time of crisis.
New book New World, New Thinking, by Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman
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“Concerning Law And Order And The First Amendment” (Linkedin)


My new article on Linkedin “Concerning Law and Order and the First Amendment

Lately, there has been a lot of talk about police brutality. The issue of police brutality has always been there, but with the rising racial tensions in America, every incident seems to make headlines and stir up protest, often regardless of the circumstances.

If the current trend continues, the US will fall into anarchy and all 330 million Americans will suffer.

To be clear, assembling in order to protest is a right that is protected by the First Amendment, and so is freedom of speech. The problem with protesting begins when it is used for civilian brutality against other civilians and against private and public property.

When the First Amendment speaks of the right to demonstrate, it clearly affirms “the right of the people peaceably to assemble.” But when a protest is not peaceful, when it is used in order to intimidate, abuse, destroy property and hurt people, in my view, the police must interfere, disband it, and restore law and order.

Disputes aren’t meant to be resolved because diversity is the engine of development and progress. When we embrace it, we grow. When we reject it, we wither.

In the current “open season” against the police, it loses legitimacy in its own eyes since officers no longer feel that they are representing the interest of the public. If we want chaos, that’s the way to go. But if this is what we want, we shouldn’t complain if anarchists and hooligans destroy city centers, disrupt the lives of tens of thousands of people for months without any repercussions, wreck stores and burn businesses for no apparent reason, and turn people’s lives into hell. For those who have already been affected by the maiming of police, it will take years to recover, if they do at all. If the current trend continues, the US will fall into anarchy and all 330 million Americans will suffer.

If we want to change things for the better, it has to happen through positive deliberation. But first, people have to realize that America is a country where everyone has a place; it is a country of diversity. This, in fact, is the beauty of America. Currently, instead of being proud of it, people are trying to make “their own kind” dominant. So the first thing that people must see is that they are all part of one system, one country. Every faction has its needs and wants, but the factions complement each other and not cancel each other out. Only once people have developed such a state of mind can they start deliberating constructively.

Once everyone agrees that this country belongs to all its citizens, they can disagree, argue, and even hate each other, as long as there is an overarching sense of belonging to one country, “one nation under God,” to quote the Pledge of Allegiance. With this oneness in mind, debates, however fierce, will only strengthen the unity of the nation and enrich its people with new perspectives. Disputes aren’t meant to be resolved because diversity is the engine of development and progress. When we embrace it, we grow. When we reject it, we wither.

“Why It Takes Caring To Build A Proper Sukkah” (Linkedin)


My new article on Linkedin “Why It Takes Caring to Build a Proper Sukkah

Sukkot [Feast of Tabernacles] is one of the most family oriented Jewish festivals. For those who observe it, it is a special experience to sit inside the Sukkah [the festive hut], eat and sing together, and celebrate the family gathering.

But Sukkot also has a profound spiritual meaning, and judging by the coronavirus closure instructions, it seems as though our reluctance to observe it on that level has made us, in a sense, “unworthy” of celebrating it as we are used to. The spiritual meaning of Sukkot has to do with the quality of our relationships.

Like all other Jewish holidays, Sukkot symbolizes a phase in our transition from people who are inclined toward singularity, to people who practice and advocate solidarity. The people of Israel “inaugurated” their nationhood when they committed to love each other “as one man with one heart,” and the Jewish holidays detail the process of achieving this goal.

According to tradition, the sechach, the roof of the Sukkah, must be made of the waste of granary and winery. This waste, the things we toss away, symbolizes the values we naturally rate as less essential for our success in life, for our singularity, namely pro-social values. Traits such as giving, caring, empathy, solidarity, mutual responsibility, and other such values that make social life possible usually come last in our list of priorities, after we have satisfied our personal ambitions, which we never do. However, for solidarity, for creating a solid and sustainable society, they are the most important.

Making the sechach particularly from those usually discarded elements means we invert our values and transform ourselves from self-centered individuals into caring and empathetic people. Putting these values over our heads, so to speak, represents the inversion of our values.

It seems like today these ideals are precisely what we need in order to mitigate the raging anger that has spread throughout society. Perhaps if we adopted these values in our lives year-round, we wouldn’t have to celebrate Sukkot with only our conjugal families.

I wish for all of us to embrace these values of Sukkot so we can make for ourselves a better world, a safer future, and a happier life altogether.

“Is There Truth In An Age Of Fake News?” (Linkedin)


My new article on Linkedin “Is There Truth in an Age of Fake News?

At a time where every TV channel, news website, and newspaper has a political agenda, can we expect anyone to tell the truth? Even social media are plagued with bias, so what can we ask of mainstream news outlets?

Worse yet, many people who are aware that mainstream outlets tilt the news to fit their political agenda turn toward alternative news sources such as personal blogs and Twitter accounts, and other less familiar social media sites. These sources often publish unchecked information. As a result, rumors and misinformation abound throughout the World Wide Web. So what can one who wants to know the truth about something important do? In truth, not much. As far as the media goes, it is already an all-out war and you simply cannot know what is really happening. The only thing we can be sure of is that fake news is no longer an exception.

We cannot blame the media for warping stories. In doing so, they only service their customers, most of whom do not want the truth, but news that caters to their existing views. Most people only want to reinforce what they already believe about the other side. Therefore, the only way to change the media is to change our attitude toward all parts of society. If we become inclusive, so will the media. If we remain belligerent, the media will keep catering to our attitude. After all, their survival depends on their popularity.

If we are looking for solace in this dismal state, it is that every correction begins with finding the problem. A few years ago, no one even thought that fake news existed, much less considered that it might plague major news outlets. Now that we know it is happening, now that we know we should relate to every news item with a grain of salt, we can begin to look for corrections. Just as in medicine, the first step toward healing is the diagnosis.

However, there is a serious hindrance in our quest for the truth: the absence of an alternative. By alternative, I am not referring to alternative news outlets; those are in abundance. By “alternative,” I am referring to an alternative attitude. People will recognize that fake news is rampant only when they recognize that their attitude toward others is harmful to their own interest. When they begin to seek ways to bridge the hatred that’s plaguing society, they will find that the media is feeding the hatred, and they will force it to balance its reporting.

Just as we embrace and love all parts of nature, the hunters and the hunted, the spring and the fall, so we should treat one another. If intense hatred is revealed, it is a sign that equally intense love will follow. Instead of fearing it, we should embrace the process and help it manifest by hastening the emergence of the love following the hatred. This diversity of states, this dynamic balance is the only true news, and every news source that tells you otherwise, that tries to convince you that only you are right or only you are wrong, is fake news.

In other words, to change the media, we first have to change our own attitude toward others. In consequence, the media will air content that suits our aspiration and will stop vilifying people with other agendas.

There is a good reason why we should change our attitude: There is no one sidedness in reality. Everything has its opposite, without which it could not exist. There wouldn’t be day if there were no night; there wouldn’t be warm if there were no cold; there wouldn’t be love if there were no hate; there wouldn’t be Democrats if there were no Republicans; and there wouldn’t be liberals if there were no conservatives. The existence of one without the other is about as possible as the existence of only one side of a coin. Can you imagine a dime with only the heads and not the tails?

Just as in nature, opposites in human society do not contradict, but complement each other in a dynamic balance. If we could see that our own existence as humans, the definition of who we are as individuals, our values, beliefs, and ethics depend on, and are often defined by those with whom we disagree, perhaps we would be more respectful to each other.

If we really think about it, if we observe both nature and human society throughout history, we will find that they’ve always moved from left to right, from sunset to sunrise, with ebbs and flows, ins and outs, ups and downs, and from hot to cold. These interchanging states have gotten us where we are, made us who we are, and are as eternal as reality itself. They are, in fact, reality.

Just as we embrace and love all parts of nature, the hunters and the hunted, the spring and the fall, so we should treat one another. If intense hatred is revealed, it is a sign that equally intense love will follow. Instead of fearing it, we should embrace the process and help it manifest by hastening the emergence of the love following the hatred. This diversity of states, this dynamic balance is the only true news, and every news source that tells you otherwise, that tries to convince you that only you are right or only you are wrong, is fake news.

“What Kind Of American President Israel Deserves” (Linkedin)


My new article on Linkedin “What Kind of American President Israel Deserves

We Israelis always want the president of America to be pro Israel, and with good reason. For decades, the US has supported Israel in many ways—financially, in the international arena, and in military aid. This support did not come without its price tag, and the US has always had at least a certain amount of control over Israel’s foreign policy, but there is no question that America’s support of Israel has done us a lot of good.

The world looks at Israel with dismay and often with disgust not because of our military conduct, but because of our conduct with each other. If we behave the way Israel should behave, making unity our top value, then whoever is elected on November 3 will be a favorable president toward Israel, as will all other nations. It is said that Jews are smart. I hope that we are smart enough to learn from our past errors so we don’t have to experience another cataclysm in the grief-stricken chronicles of our nation.

In less than a month, America will vote on who will be its president for the next four years. I think this is a good time for us to reflect on what makes us worthy of support. What are we giving to the world? Why did we establish the State of Israel to begin with? Is it only in order to serve as a safe haven after the Holocaust? If this were so, then I’m sure the nations already regret their vote from November 29, 1947 when they supported the establishing of a Jewish state.

I think that to merit support from the American President, and from every other country for that matter, the people of Israel must live up to their name. We may want to be like all other nations, but we are not. We didn’t come from a single clan or tribe; we have no biological or familial affiliation. On the contrary, our forefathers came from clans and tribes from all over the Fertile Crescent, which were often hostile toward each other. These refugees from their own nations became a separate nation since they had the same ideology, the same spiritual idea that unity and love of others must transcend all other values. This is why we began our official nationhood only after we agreed to unite “as one man with one heart.”

We struggled with our commitment to unite all through our years in the desert and we achieved sovereignty only after we achieved unity. When our unity disintegrated, we were exiled to Babylon. When we reunited under Haman’s threat of destruction, we were given Israel once more. But then we started hating each other to the point that we slaughtered and starved one another while the Roman legion sieged the walls of Jerusalem, and that made us unworthy of having a land of our own and we were exiled until now.

After World War II, we were given another chance at sovereignty. But if we don’t rise to the challenge, the nations won’t support us. Unless we find a way to be once more “as one man with one heart,” and set an example of unity to the world, the nations will see no purpose in our being here.

If another vote on the establishment of the State of Israel were done today, does anyone believe that we would receive the required two thirds favorable votes? Regardless of our foreign policy, the nations will condemn us as long as we are an example of belligerence and internal division. The world looks at Israel with dismay and often with disgust not because of our military conduct, but because of our conduct with each other. If we behave the way Israel should behave, making unity our top value, then whoever is elected on November 3 will be a favorable president toward Israel, as will all other nations.

It is said that Jews are smart. I hope that we are smart enough to learn from our past errors so we don’t have to experience another cataclysm in the grief-stricken chronicles of our nation.
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“A Sukkah Of Peace To The World” (Times Of Israel)

The Times of Israel published my new article “A Sukkah of Peace to the World

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This is a Jewish holiday season not to forget. The celebration of Sukkot this year will be characterized by the restrictions in the way it is celebrated due to the pandemic. The traditional extended gatherings and hospitality will have to wait. Why are events unfolding this way? To cause us to reflect and realize that our situation with the pandemic does not come as a punishing blow, but as a wake-up call to scrutinize the state of hatred and division between us. By keeping us physically apart, nature is trying to reverse our state of separation and bring our hearts closer to one another for the building of a true Sukkah of love and unity that will cover all of humanity for a good future.

The festival of Sukkot (The Feast of Tabernacles) is considered a joyful celebration. This year there is no reason to feel differently, as we have been given a great opportunity to analyze our poor-treatment of each other and to correct it. For this, a deep soul-searching must be made. It is similar to needing an accurate diagnosis before being able to receive the right medicine to fully recover from a sickness.

We are used to living our lives in a comfortable partnership with our ego. In all honesty, we cannot play the victims as if we are innocent lambs for the slaughter, who have been unwillingly under the control of our egoistic actions toward others, as if we have been without say or free will. Our selfish behavior is intentional and has fulfilled our self-centered interests, regardless of whether they have been to the detriment of those around us. Therefore, nature is signaling to us that we are not worthy to sit together in a common Sukkah and welcome Ushpizin (guests) until we correct the way we relate to each other. The virus is teaching us that in our interdependent world, the survival of the whole civilization is at risk if cooperation for our mutual benefit is not deemed as our primary goal.

According to the wisdom of Kabbalah, humanity is entering a stage of development called “The Last Generation.” This refers to a gradual process of change during which a new society must be built in such a way that its functioning will correspond and align with the laws of nature, meaning that it will be in connection and balance with nature. This new society must know how to manage itself correctly to reach a balanced state. This period of transition is providing an entryway for the first generation to begin to carry out true love of others. However, until this state is reached, the opposite state is revealed before our eyes—one of exploitive and reckless attitudes and actions. This unpleasant state of separation is being disclosed for us to look at ourselves, see the damage we cause, and ask for help in making a correction from the upper force that controls all of reality.

Sukkot symbolizes the beautiful process of inner change in our egoistic attributes during which we take the “waste of barn and winery”—items that represent the quality of love for others and which now seem to us to be of no value at all—and raise them above our heads as those most precious and important attributes there are, like a sheltering roof to shade us from the burning sun. Sukkot is a call to exit our comfortable egoistic “home,” meaning our self-love, and to build a new structure, a Sukkah, as a symbol of the new world that we can create if we acquire the qualities of bestowal and brotherhood.

Therefore, the true meaning of this festival is to build a new reality of mutual understanding and support—a Sukkah of peace—through the positive force we generate through our unity. We, the Jewish people, must be an example of cohesion and lead the way for others to follow, gathering the whole world beneath one big thatch-covering where we will be united as one. When this comes to pass, the temporary dwelling of the Sukkah will be completed as the common space we make for each other within our hearts, ensuring humanity a healthy life and happy coexistence under one global roof.

Happy holiday!
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“America’s Vote For Unity – NEWSMAX” (Linkedin)


My new article on Linkedin “America’s Vote for Unity – NEWSMAX

On the eve of a critical presidential election in the U.S., the world holds its breath and watches carefully any possible outcome as it will influence every inch of the planet. America, as a global superpower, has the potential to lead the way in social cohesion and positively influence the world. In order to do that, whoever wins will need to prioritize unity of American society over divisiveness.

The U.S. presidential race, as in all political campaigns, is vicious, and becoming more so every day. The air in America is so thick with animosity that it manifests in all areas of America’s daily life. Exacerbated emotions manifested as outbursts prevail in the streets, the media, workplaces, households and basically in every sphere of the U.S. society. Polarization dominates the general atmosphere.

Six of seven Americans think that news coverage in general is politically biased to a certain degree, according to a recent Gallup study. Interestingly, 69% of those surveyed said “they are more concerned about bias in the news others consume than its presence in their own news.” In other words, based on this survey, Americans lean towards sources that confirm their beliefs and do not look with open minds at alternative information sources that express opposite views.

Rising above suspicion between one another is what will steer America’s path to a positive future. Failure to do so will lead the U.S. down a course of self-destruction and chaos. Therefore, if I were asked what should be the main criterion to decide which candidate to vote for, I would say that one should analyze who offers a comprehensive plan to run the country efficiently covering its basic needs.

But above any other consideration, the million-dollar question should be what candidate for the next U.S. presidency has an inclination — not only slogans or nice words — to unite above the rampant divisions and plans to build America’s cohesion above the soaring hostility in society. The answer to this question, above all others, will illustrate what route America will take heading into the future.

Nations don’t need long and painful paths to reach a good state. By starting to think and act toward uniting all people, a society can pioneer a remarkable positive transformation. If an educational campaign is launched to raise public awareness and teach people how to organize and build a society based on mutual responsibility, the transition from hatred to peaceful coexistence above different views and beliefs will be successful and smooth.

This goal consists of a different collective consciousness that reconfigures people’s relationships toward mutual benefit, from exploitative to considerate, from polarization to inclusive cooperation. As it happens with different organs in the body when they work together to complement each other for the overall correct functioning, the different factions of U.S. society must learn to rise above their differences for harmonious relationships and a healthy nation.

It is precisely at this time of profound distress and friction that America is presented with the opportunity to realize the imperative need to create a model for a future society where people make all the possible efforts to strengthen the connection between them, understanding that from within good human relations, the essence of life — happiness, warmth, and confidence — is discovered.

“A Time Of Hate, A Time For Love” (Linkedin)


My new article on Linkedin “A Time of Hate, a Time for Love

Our sages wrote about our time in many places, such as in Masechet Sanhedrin, Masechet Sotah, and Tikkuney Zohar. They wrote that in our time, “Insolence shall soar … the face of the generation is as the face of the dog, righteous shall be cast away, authors’ wisdom shall go astray, and righteous shall be castaway.” Indeed, we are living in a time of insolence, conceit, mutual cancellation, but mainly hate.

But we are not living in a bad time. The hatred between us has been hiding within us all along, but circumstances have exposed it. Now that it’s been revealed, it is calling on us to mend it, to patch up our aversion with care and compassion, and build bridges of love above our hatred for each other. And since the whole world is going through this process, it is a sign that the whole world is ready to mend all hatred into love.

The human race is unique. We have a vocation—to consciously build a society whose members feel as one, united whole. That oneness will lead us to a new, expansive level of awareness: awareness of the entire universe, and beyond. This is why humanity has been growing increasingly connected.

So far, this process has been happening “on its own,” without our conscious participation. In order to launch the final stage, where all of humanity becomes connected, we must all participate. This is why today’s blows, such as the coronavirus outbreak, are global in nature, to impel us to act as one on a global level and develop global consciousness.

Nature cannot do the work for us, or we will not become conscious. It can expose the shattering, the hatred among us, but it cannot build the bridge of love. This is our task, the task of our generation. The manifestation of hatred is nature’s calling on us to manifest love. If we delay our response, it will only call on us more forcefully by revealing more hatred. If we embrace the calling and join the process, then love will cover the hatred and fill us with such joy that we never knew existed.

But it will not be the end of the process. To develop us even further, nature will reveal to us even deeper and more vicious hatred within us that we currently can’t see or feel. It, too, will emerge only so we may cover it with love. As the process continues, we will rise to ever higher levels of connection, care, and love, until we are all truly as one.

This is why a time of hate is always a time for love, to build love above the hate.

“Time To Move Beyond The Masks” (Linkedin)


My new article on Linkedin “Time to Move Beyond the Masks

It is time for countries to move beyond routine measures such as wearing masks and keeping social distancing in tackling the Covid-19 outbreak. These measures were good first aid steps, but they are losing their effectiveness. It’s time to treat the virus on a deeper level, the social level.

Indeed, the social level is precisely where it’s hitting us the hardest. Although the virus has killed more than a million people worldwide since the beginning of the outbreak, this toll pales compared to the social, mental, and emotional toll it’s had on people.

The social distancing imposed on us heightens the isolation many of us already feel, and exposes how far we really are from each other in our hearts. If we felt close to one another, we wouldn’t feel the distance and we wouldn’t feel apart. In that sense, Covid-19 is the first social pandemic in the history of humankind. If we heal our ill society, we will cure the pandemic.

Until now, we have approached other people only when it suited our interests. We didn’t take other people’s benefit into account and manipulated them for our own needs. The coronavirus outbreak prevents us from doing this. From now on, if we want to approach other people, we will have to think of what is best for them first, and then we will be able to decide whether or not we should approach them. We will not be able to approach people as before—to use and exploit them for self-interest.

Bit by bit, we will create a dynamic balance where each of us is like an atom in a giant molecule which is all of humanity. We will move around, but not in disarray, according to our own whims, colliding and clashing with other atoms on our path. Instead, coordinate our movements in complete harmony and balance with all the atoms in the molecule. We will become keenly aware of the state of the molecule as a whole, and we will naturally coordinate our position with that of all other atoms in the system.

We will not need complicated calculations; it will come natural for us since our care for all of humanity and all of existence will guide us. It will be as though the molecule itself is telling us what it wants us to do, and we will do it in harmony with all of reality. We will be living in a never ending dance with all parts of creation, and that dance will give us delight and vitality.

This is the lesson that the coronavirus is teaching us. If we stop resisting it and listen to its message, we will find that behind the mask and social distancing lie great wisdom and happiness that wait for us to find them.

“The Great (First) Debate” (Linkedin)


My new article on Linkedin “The Great (First) Debate

Tonight, Tuesday, at 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time, the first of three scheduled debates between President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden will take place. No doubt, it is going to be a tense event, and things are likely to flare up. The atmosphere in this campaign is so tense and so full of enmity that we shouldn’t be surprised if unprecedented (and probably reprehensible) events take place tonight, as well.

However, I would like to offer a novel way to examine the two candidates and decide which one gets my vote. I suggest we ask ourselves which of them has any tendency toward uniting the American people. At a time when hatred and division are so rife and so intense, no government can function, whoever is elected. For this reason, in the end, the only thing that will determine the fate of America is the level of connection and solidarity among people. If Americans cannot find a way to bridge the chasms that have been carved among them, the country will collapse into a violent mayhem. The next president’s first, if not only task, will be to patch up the fractions of American society and heal the hatred that’s been brewing everywhere.

If I were an American citizen, I would seek a way to pose that question to the debaters. There is so much at stake today that the answer to this question might very well indicate the fate of America.