There are 5 things we should do in 2016 to make our community better!

1. We should listen more and preach less.
2. We should build more opportunities to learn from each other,.
3. We should tap into our seniors to provide them an opportunity to be more productive.
4. We should find ways to respect those that are different than us.
5. We should us 21st Century tools to solve 21st Century problems.

I woke up this morning to find out that a Militia Group (Conservative View and Liberal View) has taken over a Federal Building.  They are heavily armed and apparently ready for any action by the Community.

After what has happened in this Country over the last 150 years or so, I was not surprised that another armed group is trying to use force to get their way.  I understand why people resort to force to get their point across.  When people think their way of life is slipping away, and they see the democratic process working against them, they see the only option left is to use force.

But, it does not have to be that way.

I propose 5 things we should do in 2016 to make our community better.  And none of them are resorting to 2nd Amendment remedies.

1. We need to listen more and preach less

Because of innovations in transportation, we no longer live in small homogeneous communities.  Our communities now are diverse with a lot of different people with a lot of different views.

We need to respect people with different views more today because in many cases they are our neighbors and co-workers.

Despite what many believe no one has a monopoly on the optimum answers.  However, many believe it is their absolute right to convert others to their beliefs.  They believe that preaching their views is more important than listening to others views and trying to come up with solutions that benefit more than just their narrow world views.

2. We Should Build More Opportunities to Learn from each other

The world is changing more now than ever before.  We cannot rely on old teachings to help us solve todays problems.  In the past it was possible to know everything about something.  Today, with the explosion of information and innovation, it is barely possible to know enough to survive about one small thing.  Doctors are forced to specialize because it is too difficult to know about everything.  Doctors are even hard pressed to stay up-to-date on their own narrow speciality.

The solution is to rely on others to learn about their speciality and then teach that speciality to others.

We have to stop thinking we know everything and acknowledge that there is a lot to learn from others.

3. We should tap into our seniors to provide them an opportunity to be more productive.

Seniors are healthy today than ever before.  But, yet, in many cases to discard them and ignore them.

Rather we should be finding ways to tap into their experiences.  We have the tools now we simply need the will to make our seniors more productive.

First thing should do it find ways to capture the stories our seniors have to tell.  They have a lot to offer and we should not let there wisdom and experience evaporate into the ether.

4. We should find ways to respect those that are different than us.

We must find ways to respect those that are different than us.  Diversity is a opportunity not a handicap.  But, to take advantage of that opportunity we need to respect others.

5. We should us 21st Century tools to solve 21st Century problems.

This blog is a great example of 21st Century Tools.  By spending a few minutes I can publish my ideas.  This was never possible in the 18th and 19th Centuries.

The domestication of the electron has given our community tools to learn and teach and grow that were unimaginable in the past.

We need to use these tools to build a better community.