Senior Vice President & Chief Corporate Citizenship Officer, U.S., Philip Morris International
What a time in U.S. history. Last month, poll results released by Morning Consult / Bloomberg indicated that half of voters in swing states fear violence around the upcoming election. Sizeable proportions also expressed concern about the potential impact of misinformation, foreign interference, and voter fraud. Can we step back from the precipice? I sometimes feel I’ve been talking my entire adult life about our world’s descent into chaos and uncertainty—into an era marked by new divisions, fears, and existential threats. It’s a topic I discussed in detail in The New Megatrends (book available on Amazon, published by Random House Penguin). Perhaps especially in the U.S., so many of us feel unmoored and even hopeless—eager for change but not at all certain how best to achieve it or whether it ever will come. As I’ve had the privilege these past few months to talk with people across several states and every political orientation, I’ve become even more convinced that the solution to what ails us as a country can’t be left to chance. We all need to claw our way out of our information bubbles and talk—really talk—to people who are nothing like us. I have found it immensely heartening to discover that the headlines about polarization and hate aren’t telling the full story. Dig deeper, and you’ll find plenty of Americans across the political spectrum who want the same things and are eager for a chance to contribute to rational solutions. Let’s stop letting the polls and pundits define who we are. #citizenship #polarization #change #newmegatrends
Richard Chen
4w
It's interesting how us 99% feel so helpless against the whims and control of a 1% government that doesn't have our interests at heart. For us to put our salvation in the people in charge will go nowhere.
Magnus Karlsson
1mo
Great point! The truth is normally a lot more complex than the headline and narrative of fear that so often is being presented. We all need to be curious to learn and understand.
President at North American Precis Syndicate
1moThat might mean the end of cancel culture and trying to appease the far left or far right at the risk of alienating the centrists who may be hybrids of social and fiscal values.