nally bring such pain upon themselves and others. I swore, as a young child, that I would get along with others and be a kind and tolerant adult. Even to this day, I am bewildered by friends, relatives and acquaintances who live for conflict and confrontation. They aren’t happy unless they arI am a sports car nut and enjoy reading Peter Egan’s column, “Side Glances,” in Road & Track magazine. I’m a fan of Peter because of his fascinating perspective, his love of saving old and eccentric cars, and because he lives in central Wisconsin, one of my favorite places (where else can you find the Dells, Ella’s Deli and the House on the Rock?). In the July, 2007 issue he tells of he and his wife being stuck in their Jeep in a blizzard and being rescued by a particularly helpful and generous neighbor, Tom Severson, and his tractor. Peter writes, “If everyone were like the Seversons, you could fire the military and the police and send them home to do other work. Sunnis would be helping Shiites to rebuild their shrines, and the Pentagon could be used for craft fairs. J. Edgar Hoover would be remembered, principally, as a song and dance man. Why is this concept so difficult for the human race to understand? I don’t know. I landed on this strange planet just as puzzled as you are. Been here ever since.”

I grew up in an alcoholic and very dysfunctional home. My parents held screaming battles virtually every day, and I was mystified why people would intentionally bring such pain upon themselves and others. I swore, as a young child, that I would get along with others and be a kind and tolerant adult. Even to this day, I am bewildered by friends, relatives and acquaintances who live for conflict and confrontation. They aren’t happy unless they are

nd the Dells, Ella’s Deli and the House on the Rock?). In the July, 2007 issue he tells of he and his wife being stuck in their Jeep in a blizzard and being rescued by a particularly helpful and generous neighbor, Tom Severson, and his tractor. Peter writes, “If everyone were like the Seversons, you could fire the military and the police and send them home to do other work. Sunnis would be helping Shiites to rebuild their shrines, and the Pentagon could be used for craft fairs. J. Edgar Hoover would be remembered, principally, as a song and dance man. Why is this concept so difficult for the human race to understand? I don’t know. I landed on this strange planet just as puzzled as you are. Been here ever since.”

I grew up in an alcoholic and very dysfunctional home. My parents held screaming battles virtually every day, and I was mystified why people would intentionally bring such pain upon themselves and others. I swore, as a young child, that I would get along with others and be a kind and tolerant adult. Even to this day, I am bewildered by friends, relatives and acquaintances who live for conflict and confrontation. They aren’t happy unless they ar

, you could fire the military and the police and send them home to do other work. Sunnis would be helping Shiites to rebuild their shrines, and the Pentagon could be used for craft fairs. J. Edgar Hoover would be remembered, principally, as a song and dance man. Why is this concept so difficult for the human race to understand? I don’t know. I landed on this strange planet just as puzzled as you are. Been here ever since.”

I grew up in an alcoholic and very dysfunctional home. My parents held screaming battles virtually every day, and I was mystified why people would intentionally bring such pain upon themselves and others. I swore, as a young child, that I would get along with others and be a kind and tolerant adult. Even to this day, I am bewildered by friends, relatives and acquaintances who live for conflict and confrontation. They aren’t happy unless they ar

for the human race to understand? I don’t know. I landed on this strange planet just as puzzled as you are. Been here ever since.”

I grew up in an alcoholic and very dysfunctional home. My parents held screaming battles virtually every day, and I was mystified why people would intentionally bring such pain upon themselves and others. I swore, as a young child, that I would get along with others and be a kind and tolerant adult. Even to this day, I am bewildered by friends, relatives and acquaintances who live for conflict and confrontation. They aren’t happy unless they ar

nally bring such pain upon themselves and others. I swore, as a young child, that I would get along with others and be a kind and tolerant adult. Even to this day, I am bewildered by friends, relatives and acquaintances who live for conflict and confrontation. They aren’t happy unless they are stirring the pot and upsetting someone and being upset. I have relatives who are angry with everyone they meet and know.

These attitudes permeate much of our public discourse. Talk show and cable TV hosts spout resentment of all who aren’t on their side and see charity, tolerance and compromise as weakness. Religious fundamentalists, rather than teaching the love and forgiveness of their founders, preach judgment, superiority and even hatred of those who believe otherwise. Likewise, the extremes of the left and right express nothing but revulsion for those who disagree. These attitudes are reflected every day in the current presidential campaigns, and it’s all spread and nurtured by a desperate news media.

On a more macro level, these confrontational and superior attitudes have expressed themselves in wars and terrorism throughout history.

It appears to me that whatever motivates our anger, prejudices, and arrogance on an individual level, whether it be depression, psychosis or just upbringing, projects itself onto our public behavior as a society. And, unfortunately, those who are the angriest and loudest get the most attention. Those of us who