The bipartisan camaraderie felt by CA freelancers fighting to #RepealAB5 is a powerful story in this era of dehumanizing political polarization. I often think about the importance of civility and debate. Here are some things I have learned:

1) Most people think they are good, smart, and fighting a righteous fight. If you insult them or members of their tribe, you immediately lose credibility & your message will not be considered. It makes you sound like the enemy & causes a fight or flight response.

2) Great policy is hard to develop in an ideological bubble. We and our reps need to engage in sincere debate with each other to create good relations & beneficial laws. Cooperation is more important than being right, and it’s more important than towing your party line.

3) If someone doesn’t agree with you, it doesn’t mean they are a troll, or a paid protester, or a bot. Check them out before you hurl cheap accusations & consider the possibility that a person may actually have a different opinion. Listen to them (unless they really are a troll)

4) If you don’t agree with a position within your party, speak up! Demonstrate your reasonableness. Hold your people accountable so that those with contrasting politics can start to see you as multifaceted- and stop seeing you as a homogenous ocean of “Other.” Be courageous!

5.) We can fix many of our political polarization problems with #ApprovalVoting as promoted by @ElectionScience. In our current voting system, half of the electorate is *deeply* dismayed when the opposing party wins. This is not a good starting point for bridging the divide!

#ApprovalVoting lets you vote for all the candidates you approve of. If you only like one, that’s fine. But, if you want to vote for more, you can! Strategic voting for “the lesser of two evils” becomes a relic of the past & the winner has the most overall approval. Imagine that!

#ApprovalVoting is the antidote to our stale two party system. It can free us from the corruption of supermajorities by allowing 3rd parties a place in the conversation. It would more accurately represent more of us & help us get past our polarization. Check out @ElectionScience