I am impressed with the diversity and nuance of the comments on Part 1 of the Pandemania series. Super impressed. These are issues that provoke intense emotions, yet people were able to describe their experiences, feelings, and opinions with very little blame, self-righteousness, or dehumanizing labels.

I rarely see that even on forums where everyone is mostly in agreement, much less as here where so many perspectives are represented. That gives me a lot of hope. You see, if humanity cannot come to some degree of peace and coherence, there is no hope for a better future. Why? Because our main problems are self-created. The solutions to every ecological, social, and economic problem are readily available—if only we could come to agreement.

This hope coexists with the sober realization that we have a long, long way to go. Let me illustrate this with another story. I have heard dozens like it. A woman just wrote me in heartbreak.