A month ago, we were Democrats & Republicans, conservatives & liberals, blacks & whites, neo-Nazi’s and Black Panthers.  Underneath all those pejorative labels, we are sometimes reminded that we’re all Americans.  Watching the huge non-governmental response to Hurricane Harvey, we are reminded of that and should be proud of ourselves.  I salute all those thousands of volunteers who are helping the victims of Harvey.  We are there for each other!

But, there is more to this.  Underneath the pejoratives, we are Americans.  Underneath that, we are human beings first.  It is our nature as humans to protect our species — other humans.  Why then does it take a crisis for us to act human?

From an economics standpoint, unlimited wants for limited resources will produce inevitable conflict.

Capitalism used to be called an economic system, but it is now a religious system and must be respected as such.  If loud, intrusive TV commercials can increase sales by even 1%, it is our duty to accept them as necessary.  If permeable surfaces increase construction costs by even 1%, it is unfair to expect builders to bear that cost.  If the worship of capitalism causes any problem, it is our duty to remember it is indeed the greatest economic system in history.

From a political standpoint, our leaders have been coarsened by the discrimination against moderates that is produced by gerrymandering.  Extremist leaders will not lead us to the same place as moderate leaders.  Extremist leaders have led us astray.

The next time you grimace at the news and tolerate the loud commercials, rejoice that our extremist leaders were freely elected (albeit from gerrymandered districts), and you are free to worship the greatest economic system in history.  If you find that insufferable, rejoice — there is always the next crisis, when we can be humans again.