Recent BI and Substack Posts

Polarization is insidious and dangerous. Steps should be taken to avoid it when possible, and reverse it when it has already developed.

Oppression is maintained through superior power, control of meaning, self-fulfilling prophecies, and distorted relationships.

Parties, issues, dynamics, power, and relationships are among the conflict elements one must clearly understand.

Oppression has been with us through the ages. Fortunately we have learned many strategies for overcoming it.

Today's biggest question is whether collaborative problem-solving can resist the ongoing and aggressive reassertion of Machiavellian power. #mbi_frontiers

If ever the "peacemakers time is at hand," this is it! Join our effort to help share what peacebuilders know that can help.

Opposing today's injustices will require cooperation across the racial divides that were a focus of many of the unrightable wrongs of the past. #mbi_cci

Success is usually obtained by using a combination of two or three strategies, not just one--especially not just coercion! #mbi_cci

The political discussions about justice this summer of 2020 are very narrow; they should take a much wider view of what encompasses "justice." #mbi_cci

A reflection on the dangerous escalation between police and their communities and how to address that effectively for all constituencies. #mbi_cci

We are all, in a sense, on one giant lifeboat. Surviving the storm will require us to figure out how to work together more effectively. #mbi_cci

Our tendency to focus on things that make us furious distorts the way we look at the world in ways that threaten rather than advance our interests. #mbi_cci

Conflict escalation is, arguably, "the most destructive force on the planet." It is what leads us into war and catastrophic acts of inhumanity. #mbi_cci

Social processes like hyperpolarization can't continue indefinitely without leading to catastrophe. We desperately need an exit strategy. #mbi_cci

By broadening their understanding of their "backyard" to include their whole community, citizens can be much more powerful in their advocacy efforts.

Hyperpolarization at the level of hateful, but entertaining, rhetoric could easily escalate into large-scale 1960s-style civil unrest and violence.

Economic panic and/or escalating political violence threatens to upend society even more rapidly than the COVID-19 pandemic. #mbi_cci

The inflammatory tactics that make mobilize-the-base politics so effective are tearing us apart In ways that will be very difficult to reverse #mbi_cci

Primal screams don't change policy or public opinion. Demonstrators should know their goals--and the best way to accomplish them. #mbi_cci

What determines whether escalation of the conflicts over police brutality and systemic racism is beneficial? What can be done to make it as constructive as possible? #mbi_cci

The key to successful revolutionary (or evolutionary) change a broadly agreed-upon vision for a better society in which most everyone would like to live. #mbi_fundamentals

Competition, collaboration, compromise, avoidance, and accommodation all have costs and benefits. Know which is best when! #mbi_fundamentals

It's time "we, the people" start taking control of our frames, focusing on shared frames instead of the polarizing ones we are being fed. #mbi_fundamentals

Everything we know about world events is filtered through the media. When those filters are flawed we can wind up fighting against our interests. #mbi_fundamentals

By choosing one's conflict strategies carefully, it is possible to build support without the destructive consequences that usually accompany escalation. #mbi_fundamentals