The Star - News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area

No matter what just happened, we’re all in this together.

Regardless of which candidate won the presidential election, or any others you’re watching closely, the republic, state and county will survive, especially with our help.

Note that collective “our” that indicates it’s up to all of us to move on and work together, whether we like those on the other side of the argument or not.

That can be especially difficult if you’re convinced, as so many seem to be, that those whose views you just can’t stomach are either stupid or evil.

Here’s a viewpoint that may help alleviate the pain of transition from campaign season to reality: Their views, what you may regard as their inconceivable alternative reality, are just as necessary to the survival of society as yours.

You can argue with that all you want, but the fact is that not one of us alone is wise enough to steer this boat we’re all in, and there is a good reason that we all disagree. In fact, if we didn’t, we’d be in big trouble. We each like to believe that we are quite rational, that we make good decisions based on facts. The reality, though, is quite different.

The truth is that every decision we make is based on emotion, which we only justify with rationale. There are many variations but only two basic emotions: love and fear. All else springs from those two. Fear is the most effective and immediate, but lasting good only comes from love. Both are necessary, and each tends to lead to the emergence of one world view or the other. And the existence of both of those views is necessary for our survival. None are wise enough to know which view is the most useful at any point in time, but perhaps together all of us are.

So no matter if your side won or lost, take a deep breath and get ready to work with the other side. Some of their views are right, and some of yours are wrong, but together, we’ll figure it out in the long run.

Scott Hunter

editor and publisher