Christmas gift idea may lead to holiday truce

I have the very best Christmas gift suggestions for our readers. And though this humble column will not reach from sea to shining sea, the suggestion applies to all of us.

Let’s all go Fox free this holiday season. Or CNN free. Or MSNBC free.

You get my drift.

I’m increasingly convinced it’s not necessarily the news of the day that divides us but rather the non-stop, minute-by-minute drumbeat of partisan rhetoric that so dominates our lives.

If your choice of media - primarily television to us old codgers - is turned on, it’s impossible to escape the constant divisive sputum that in turn dominates our conversation.

This Christmas gift suggestion is a highly practical approach to improving our attitudes and, in a small way, removing that wall that divides too many of us.

Now don’t misunderstand. I am not advocating being an ostrich placing your head in the sand to avoid something unpleasant.

This is simply a holiday truce.

There’s a famous and true story from World War I.

In 1914, war was raging among the British, German and French forces. On Christmas eve of that year, the soldiers on their own decided to cease fighting and come together with the enemies.

The soldiers mingled with their enemies, even playing impromptu games of football, exchanging gifts and singing Christmas carols.

The combatants paused to bury their dead and share a meal with the men they had been trying to kill just the day before.

Now we’re not currently in combat but we’re in a cultural and political war that rivals any in our nation’s history.

Our current cultural war is being driven by dueling philosophies but it is exaggerated by a daily barrage of highly partisan rhetoric pretending to be news.

Maybe we can follow the example of a hundred years ago and, at least for a short time, abandon our differences and come together to celebrate the season.

And just adding to the wisdom of this suggestion, it costs nothing!

My wife casually asked me the other day, “What’s happening in the news.” And it was with no small amount of pride that I said I didn’t know and had not been paying attention to the talking heads that take up far too much of our time.

Rest assured, come January and the new Congress that will be seated, the war will resume.

The divide will not evaporate and odds are it will probably increase in furor. And like other wars in our nation’s history, there’s no end in sight.

But we all would do well for ourselves and others if we declared a cease fire over this holiday season.

Might I suggest the Hallmark Christmas stories instead of Sean Hannity or Jim Acosta.