It is all about people -- Harwood on this election

We write and talk a lot about community building on this community thinking blog and I keep the words of Rich Harwood close by because I find that his macro approach to our micro communities seems to be a very solid foundation for discussion starting. Today, in his blog, Rich talks about Senator Obama's grandmother and the true humanity represented by the idea that she succumbed to cancer on the last day of this presidential campaign. I hope you will read this Harwood column because it really does pack a lot wisdom.

Here are a few lines that I think pertain to the ideas and actions in our small, dynamic cosmopolitan piece of the world we call Hartsville, SC:

From Richard Harwood: "It is easy for people to get pushed aside in our politics and public life. Our strength is gauged by how we outfox our opponents, or can get funding for our efforts, or gain publicity. Sure, each of these is needed at different times. But they are not what our efforts are about.

If want to make progress, any kind of progress, then we must return a greater sense of humanity in our politics and public life. We need to see and hear each other again. We need to resist mechanistic responses that deny people's ability to truly engage and express their aspirations and concerns. We need empathy -- not sympathy that asks us to take up each other's cause, but a willingness to understand a different perspective and to welcome different insights. We need to be willing to think about the common good, and not just own good."

Community building is about building so that other are included, and I think you will find it much better said in Rich's November 4 blog. Let me know what you think of it.