It is essential to find common ground with people who we don’t agree with. This should be based on evidence that we all accept. The problem is that it is getting harder for people with different beliefs to agree on what is convincing, and easier to find these debates frustrating, bleak and futile.

This is a lost cause with people in the engagement business, who simply want attention to build an audience, and who don’t care about facts. Then it’s easy to just say things and, in fact, it’s lucrative. It nourishes the ecosystems that feed on crisis and grievance.

But more often our disagreements are with people who genuinely want to empower Americans to build a better life, but who see the world through a different window because of different exposure to economic risk or different life experiences.

Moving closer to ground level is a path forward. Most of us are disgusted by greed, believe in fair pay for hard work, and want a future that holds decent jobs, homes, health care, and a clean environment for our children and grandchildren.

We need to rebuild the public square, the open public space in the heart of traditional towns and cities that is used for community gatherings. A place where we talk to each other in clear, down-to-earth words.

We need to discover the shared experiences that illuminate thinking, not just feeling; reflection, not just sensation; and hopes that we can act on together.