In this time, news stations like Fox News has injected a hyper partisan political climate that has caused a deterioration of civil discourse on the many important Issues Facing this nation. The sort of intellectual debate on ideas that are a basic foundation of a democratic republic is becoming more difficult as Americans from different regions have become more ideologically and economically isolated from people with different viewpoints. I am a liberal Democrat, but I have to admit that progressives can be just as partisan as conservatives. There have been some recent efforts by liberals and conservatives to engage in a civil debate on ideas. A few weeks ago, for instance, Bernie Sanders and Ted Cruz engaged in a civil debate on health care reform and both Senators answered questions from members of the audience. I think these type of debates and discussions of ideas are an important part of what makes this country great. One of my favorite books is The Adams-Jefferson Letters: The Complete Correspondence Between Thomas Jefferson and John and Abigail Adams. These three great Americans were close friends even though Jefferson was an ardent Republican who believed in strong local contral while John and Abigail Adams were fervent Federalists who believed in a strong federal government. They used their letters to debate on their different ideas on government and political philosophy. To try to understand more about the various issues facing the nation, I've gotten into the habit of listening to discussions and debates in youtube videos by various organizations I respect. To understand an issue better, it's good to listen to people who have spent years researching and learning about the subject. In most of these videos, the speaker takes a short time to speak, then they take questions from the audience. Some of these videos are from institutes, some from colleges and universities. I listen, do some research to listen to diverse views of the subject, then I slowly make up my mind on what I believe. Even when I disagree with some things that the speaker says, I learn from different viewpoints. In listening intelligent arguments of people I disagree with, I learn about the strengths and weaknesses of my own opinions. Here are some youtube channels I listen to.