OCTOBER 21-27, 2015 UCW 21
WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM
Fayetteville's
CONCERT
CONNECTION
HILLTOP HOUSE
1240 Fort Bragg Rd. • 484-6699
www.hilltophousenc.com
Thursday Live Music
HUSKE HARDWARE HOUSE
405 Hay Street • 437-9905
www.huskehardware.com
Oct. 23 Tommy King
Oct. 24 Tommy King
Oct. 30 Tommy King
Nov. 7 Tommy King
KICK BACK JACKS
5081 Morganton Rd. • 223-7676
Friday Live Music
THE CROWN COMPLEX
1960 Coliseum Dr. • (910) 438-4100
www.crowncomplexnc.com
Oct. 23 Katt Williams
ROCK SHOP
128 S. King St. • (910) 321-ROCK
www.therockshoplive.com/
Oct. 25 Element A440
Oct. 28 Octobrists
Oct. 30 Society Lust of
Propaganda
Nov. 7 Motorjunkie
Nov. 25 Four Skin
Dec. 31 Society Lust of
Propaganda
Politics. There are few things more effective at driving a wedge — long
or short term — between even the best of friends. Whether the exchange
stems from the most recent attack at a school or a debate on affordable
healthcare, opinions and presuppositions can run so deeply that once poli-
tics enter the equation, someone is surely going to walk away offended,
confused or both.
So what do we do with the things we feel strongly about? Ignore them?
Wait for them to correct themselves? No. We learn to talk about them.
From the political buttons of the 1950's to today's T-shirts, caps and
more stating exactly where we stand, Americans have grown very com-
fortable with expressing our opinions without uttering a word. And in
this age of expanding platforms through social media, we've decided
to take the impersonal approach one step further. So much so that we
have almost completely lost the art of personal conversation — let alone
intelligent debate — on any subject. Too many people don't even take
the time to discuss much any more. Someone grabs a picture, tosses
in a quote that sounds like it just might be true and creates a meme to
share in front of dozens, or even hundreds of like-minded people in their
immediate circle to click "like" on. Toss in a little controversy and typi-
cally zero worries of fact-checking, and you got yourself a full-fledged
riot of offense ready to go.
All without saying a word.
How is it we can have such deep-seated beliefs and opinions in things
we know so little about? And why is it we are so quickly offended by the
things we probably don't even understand? We live in a world of absolute
marvel when it comes to the means of communication, yet we are so far
from being able to effectively communicate that we miss the point of near-
ly everything around us.
There's a solution. Put down your phone. Turn off the television. Lift
your eyes — literally and figuratively. If you're a parent, set aside some
time each day where electronics are forbidden, and talk. Ask someone
else about their day, and tell them about yours. Relearn what it means to
genuinely care and embrace the art of simple conversation and share it
with someone. As technology continues to drive a virtual wedge between
us in the name of communication and progress, the basics of
human interaction through conversation may just turn this
generation around. And it may even allow a few more gen-
erations to exist.
Effective Communication
by DAN DEBRULER
Are today's methods of communication making us closer or driving us apart?
DAN DEBRULER WCLN Station Manager,
Contributing Writer. COMMENTS? Editor@
upandcomingweekly.com. 910.484.6200
