Back in college, I took a political science class that gave me a framework I still think about today. My professor explained that progressives and conservatives ultimately want the same three things:
- Safety – protection from threats, both physical and social.
- Human rights – the ability to live with dignity and freedom.
- Prosperity – a stable foundation where people can flourish.
That’s it. That’s the core. Strip away the headlines, the soundbites, and the endless partisan spin, and you’ll find those three goals at the center of almost every political argument.
So why does it feel like we’re living in two different countries sometimes?
Because the divide isn’t about the destination. It’s about the road to get there.
- Conservatives often see order, stability, and tradition as the surest path to safety and prosperity. If we anchor ourselves in what has “worked” before, society stays strong.
- Progressives often see reform, expansion of rights, and equity as the necessary path. If we change what’s unjust or exclusionary, society becomes stronger.
The conflict isn’t over whether people should be safe, free, or prosperous…it’s over how to balance those values when they collide.
The “Us vs. Them” Problem
What’s shifted in the past few decades isn’t the goals, it’s the rhetoric. Since the rise of talk radio (and cable news wars, podcasts, etc.) the conversation has grown sharper, more combative, and more personal. Opponents aren’t just people with a different path toward the same end. They’re cast as enemies and as existential threats.
That combative framing only deepened with cable news silos and social media echo chambers. When media outlets make their living on outrage and division, compromise becomes a liability and nuance becomes weakness. When the loudest voices say “we” can only survive if “they” are defeated, the shared goals of safety, rights, and prosperity fade into the background.
Partisan media hasn’t created the differences, but it has amplified them to the point where many people don’t just disagree. They don’t even recognize that the other side is striving for similar ends.
Why This Matters
I find it grounding to remember what my professor said all those years ago: the core wants are the same. It doesn’t erase the pain of polarization, and it doesn’t solve the disagreements. But it reframes them. Instead of assuming “they want the opposite of what I want,” I can remind myself: we both want safety, rights, and prosperity. We just differ on how to get there.
Maybe the task of our time isn’t to pretend unity where there is division. Maybe it’s to push back against the easy “us vs. them” story and to remember that beneath all the noise, we’re more alike in our desires than our media would have us believe.
Rowdy and Redeemed 