Last fall, my wife and I spent 17 days in Europe. We not only had a beautiful time, it was a real eye-opener, seeing the United States from the outside. I was just grateful that no one stoned us. Actually, almost everyone was very warm and welcoming.. yeah, I know.. they wanted our money. But I did get the feeling that there's more goodwill toward Americans than the United States.
I wish I was as confident as you are that if we simply ignore polarization that it will somehow be swept away. I think there are plenty of examples in history that ignoring something, and not speaking out doesn't always make it go away.
Nice to hear from you port-siders on this. (Is port on the right, or left and does it make any difference if you're standing on your head?)