we just don’t seem to like each other anymore. We once built community centers and donated to libraries, joined sporting teams and attended civic meetings, swam in local pools and played in public parks, participated in street picnics and watched Fourth of July celebrations, went to church and supported social clubs, and cleaned town squares and help paint our neighbor’s house. where have those days gone? That seem like a bygone era, a relic of a different generation or different country. Today Republicans vilify the Democrats, and Democrats denigrate the Republicans. The poor despise the rich, and the rich ostracize the poor. Organizations mistreat employees, and employees detest organizations. We argue rather than debate, criticize rather than praise, and degrade rather than dignify. We rarely talk to those we know, and seldom socialize with those we do. The past may not have been idyllic, but it seemed more safe, more friendly, and more considerate. can it get better? can we do better? We can create a place where citizens share virtuous common values, where a sense of compromise advances all not just the few, where we contribute our unique gifts and talents to benefit our communities, where we are kind and gracious to our fellow man, and where we are grateful for the good fortune we have in our lives. These are the traits and characteristics of people searching for something better, of neighborhoods building something stronger, and countries offering something brighter. It really can be done, and this book shows you how.