The topic below was originally posted in my blog, the Intrepid Liberal Journal.

For all the polarization that exists in America along political, racial, religious and class lines, we're all part of a larger community. As a New Yorker I felt that in the early days following 9/11. I had that feeling after the 1995 bombing in Oklahoma City. Sadly, our sense of community has eroded in recent years as the gap between rich and poor has widened while cynical politicians exploited wedge issues in "base elections."