My undergraduate training was in the area of sociology. I really have found little of lasting value in much of that training but for a few concepts. One is that an institution will eventually lose its original purpose and goal, giving more focus to the survival of the organization rather than the original passion that birthed it. Another I consider to be a modern day form of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, which is known as the Hegelian Dialectic. It refers to a process; a way of doing things, no matter what the content or subject matter might be.
A dialectic is: 1) a way of discovering what is true by considering opposite theories. 2) using questions and answers as a method of examining something or finding a solution to a problem. 3). Conflict and disagreement are a necessary part of a dialectic approach.
The way our “national conversations” about problems and solutions takes place is through media; the mainstream news media and increasing numbers of independent reporting. For decreasing numbers, positions of institutional churches are also included. The ...