Social media is a lot of things, but I don't think it has fundamentally changed who people are. We have always found ways to miscommunicate with one another. Social media just does an exceptional job at facilitating it.
Most of the time, the stakes are pretty low, so it doesn't matter. But when something truly awful happens, like what is currently happening in the Middle East, the consequences of miscommunication are dire. It's critical to listen, really listen and hear what the vast majority of people are saying. We are appalled by the violence, and our hearts break for innocent lives lost and all those who suffer. That's the only place where we'll find solace and, ultimately, solutions. Not in what side we perceive others are taking or whom they are blaming.
John Auchter is a freelance political cartoonist. His views are his own and do not necessarily reflect those of Michigan Radio, its management, or its license holder, the University of Michigan.
