We Have More in Common Than We Think
We have more in common than we think, even in today’s intense times. Political division is boiling over. Threats and violence against leaders are rising. And yet, unity remains possible. History shows that societies survive by remembering their shared humanity. That is why we must remind ourselves daily: we have more in common than we imagine.
We are a democracy. That means we’re supposed to think differently, speak openly, and challenge one another. However, there’s a difference between disagreement and hatred. Between diversity of ideas and demonizing anyone who thinks another way.
As a medical hypnotherapist, I’ve seen how people can break through deeply ingrained emotional patterns. Self-hypnosis and mindfulness help calm the storm inside. When we become more centered, we stop reacting and start listening.
Let’s talk about how political division harms us, how history gives us a roadmap, and how we can reclaim our best selves with kindness and awareness.
We Have More in Common Than Political Division Suggests
America was built on disagreement. The founders didn’t all see eye to eye. But they worked through it, fought hard, and compromised. Today, we seem to have lost that ability.
We draw hard lines. We stop talking. We label and shame. Worse, political violence is creeping into the mainstream. In recent years, we’ve seen not only toxic speech but also physical attacks and assassination attempts. That is not freedom. That is chaos.
It’s not only political figures being targeted. Our nation is hurting from within. Mass shootings, school shootings, and other acts of domestic terrorism have become part of the American backdrop. These tragedies are symptoms of despair, hate, and emotional collapse.
When people feel isolated or unheard, they lash out. Sometimes at others. Sometimes at themselves. Therefore, we must remember that we have more in common than our differences suggest. The strength of democracy isn’t just in the vote—it’s in our ability to coexist.
It’s Not About the Nail
My favorite Youtube about listening. “Don’t try to fix it. I just need you to listen.”
Unite – We Have More in Common Than Anger Reveals
Anger is easy. It feels righteous and powerful. However, it is also blinding. It blocks us from seeing the humanity in others.
When I work with people using hypnosis, I help them uncover the emotional roots of anger. Beneath it are fear, hurt, or helplessness. That is when transformation begins.
Self-hypnosis helps us see beyond the moment. It calms the body and clears the mind. In addition, mindfulness techniques bring awareness to thoughts before they take over. These tools shift us from emotional reactivity to rational choice.
When I say we have more in common, I mean at the deepest level. Our nervous systems are wired the same no matter your skin color, religious beliefs, or political views. We all bleed the same red blood. We all breathe the same air. Our fears, needs, and dreams echo one another. As a result, remembering this truth softens us. It opens us. It removes the need for an enemy.
Your Hypnosis Health Info Hypnotic Suggestion for today:
I am listening with compassion and an open heart.
We Have More in Common Through Mindfulness
Mindfulness isn’t only about stress relief. It is about reclaiming control.
Every day, we are bombarded with media designed to trigger us. Headlines scream. Social posts outrage. No wonder we lash out. Yet, that cycle can be broken.
Self-hypnosis is a powerful form of mindfulness. In just a few minutes a day, you can quiet the noise and connect to your calmest self. You gain the ability to pause, reflect, and choose your response.
Imagine political conversations where we actually listened. Where the goal was not to win, but to understand. That is how change happens—one mind at a time. And it starts with you. If you want help learning these skills, email me at Roger@HypnosisHealthInfo.com.
We Have More in Common Than History Divides
History doesn’t repeat itself word for word—but it does echo. And right now, we are hearing familiar echoes.
In times of fear and instability, dangerous leaders have risen by stoking division and turning families and neighbors against each other. Nazi Germany is a clear example. Hitler used hardship, fear, and misinformation to manipulate millions into seeing fellow citizens as enemies.
That history is not distant. And it is not unique. Other regimes—Stalin’s USSR, Pol Pot in Cambodia, and more—followed the same script: dehumanize, divide, and control.
When we stop listening and let fear guide us, we open the door to tyranny. Not because we are bad, but because we are human and vulnerable to the same traps. Yet, we don’t have to fall into them again.
We have more in common than history’s divisions suggest. Remembering that truth helps us resist manipulation. It keeps us awake, compassionate, and free.
We Have More in Common Than Violence Suggests
The story of America also includes a tragic list of targeted killings—public officials, activists, journalists, and judges whose lives were cut short by hate.
From Medgar Evers and Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1960s, to Harvey Milk in the 1970s, to physicians, judges, and civil-rights leaders across later decades, the pattern is clear. Violence has tried to silence voices of justice and change. And it has continued into the present, with journalists and elected officials still at risk.
Alongside these attacks are the mass shootings that scar our schools and communities. Since 2018, more than 230 school shootings have left children, families, and teachers grieving. Already this year, nine school shootings have taken lives or caused injury. Each incident is a reminder of how despair can erupt into violence.
But statistics alone cannot tell the story. Behind every number is a human life, a family, and a community in mourning. Each act of violence tears at our shared fabric. And yet, the deeper truth remains: we have more in common than violence allows us to see.
When we honor those lives with compassion and courage, we reject hate’s false power. We choose unity over division, listening over rage, and love over fear.
We Have More in Common Through Kindness
Kindness isn’t weakness. It is courage. Choosing empathy over outrage is revolutionary.
We’ve all felt dismissed or judged. But we’ve also felt the healing power of being truly heard. That presence is medicine.
When I guide people in self-hypnosis, they reconnect to their values—compassion, fairness, curiosity. These qualities live in all of us. Fear only hides them.
So here’s a radical idea: what if our politics were driven by kindness? What if “we the people” meant all people, even those we disagree with?
The Christian tradition puts it simply:
“Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.” (Matthew 25:45, NIV)
You don’t have to be Christian to grasp this. Most faiths and philosophies agree: how we treat the most vulnerable reveals who we are.
We have more in common than today’s noise allows. Let’s start there.
Listening Shows We Have More in Common
We’re trained to argue. True listening is rare.
Real listening isn’t about waiting to reply. It’s about pausing your agenda to understand someone else’s world. In fact, hypnosis and mindfulness build this mental flexibility. They help us hold multiple truths at once.
If everyone felt heard, much of the rage would disappear. The most powerful political act today might not be casting a vote—it might be listening. That is how healing begins.
We Have More in Common Than the Media Claims
The media profits on outrage. The more fear, the more clicks. But that is not the whole story.
Most people I meet—across the spectrum—care about their families, communities, and country. They want peace. They want fairness. They want to be treated with respect.
That is the real America.
And let’s be clear: we are not a “Christian Nation.” We are a nation where you are free to be Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Jewish, agnostic, atheist—or anything else. That freedom is our strength.
The First Amendment ensures belief is never forced. You live your truth, and I live mine. That is extraordinary.
When we unplug from constant triggers, we see each other again. Different views don’t make us enemies. They make us human. We have more in common than the media suggests.
The Path Forward Shows We Have More in Common
We cannot wait for leaders to fix this. It starts with us.
Through self-hypnosis and mindfulness, we can pause, reflect, and act with intention. We can choose kindness, truth, and compassion.
If you want to learn how, I can help. Email me at Roger@HypnosisHealthInfo.com.
We have more in common than today’s politics allow. And we have everything we need to remember that—starting now.
Targeted killings of public officials, political/civil-rights figures, activists, journalists, and judges) in the U.S. just in my lifetime
-
1960’s**
- Medgar Evers — NAACP field secretary (Jackson, MS, Jun 12, 1963).
- James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, Michael Schwerner — civil-rights workers (Neshoba Co., MS, Jun 21, 1964).
- Malcolm X — nationalist/civil-rights leader (NYC, Feb 21, 1965).
- Viola Liuzzo — civil-rights activist (Lowndes Co., AL, Mar 25, 1965).
- Wharlest Jackson — NAACP leader (Natchez, MS, Feb 27, 1967).
- Martin Luther King Jr. — civil-rights leader (Memphis, TN, Apr 4, 1968).
- Robert F. Kennedy — U.S. senator/presidential candidate (Los Angeles, CA, Jun 5, 1968).
- Fred Hampton & Mark Clark — Black Panther leaders (Chicago, IL, Dec 4, 1969).
-
1970’s
- Orlando Letelier — Chilean dissident (Washington, DC, Sep 21, 1976).
- George Moscone & Harvey Milk — SF mayor & supervisor (San Francisco, CA, Nov 27, 1978).
- Judge John H. Wood Jr. — U.S. district judge (San Antonio, TX, May 29, 1979).
-
1980’s
- Alan Berg — radio host (Denver, CO, Jun 18, 1984).
- Alex Odeh — Arab-American civil-rights leader (Santa Ana, CA, Oct 11, 1985).
- Judge Robert S. Vance — U.S. appeals judge (Mountain Brook, AL, Dec 16, 1989).
-
1990’s
- Meir Kahane — Israeli-American activist/politician (NYC, Nov 5, 1990).
- Dr. David Gunn — physician (Pensacola, FL, Mar 10, 1993).
- Dr. John Britton & James Barrett — physician & clinic escort (Pensacola, FL, Jul 29, 1994).
- Dr. Barnett Slepian — physician (Amherst, NY, Oct 23, 1998).
-
2000’s
- Thomas C. Wales — federal prosecutor (Seattle, WA, Oct 11–12, 2001).
- Dr. George Tiller — physician (Wichita, KS, May 31, 2009).
-
2010’s
- Judge John M. Roll — U.S. district chief judge (Tucson, AZ, Jan 8, 2011; killed during attack targeting Rep. Giffords).
- ADA Mark Hasse; DA Mike McLelland & Cynthia McLelland — Kaufman County prosecutors (TX, 2013).
- State Sen. Clementa C. Pinckney — SC legislator/pastor (Charleston, SC, Jun 17, 2015).
-
2020’s
- Retired Judge John P. “Jack” Roemer — Wisconsin circuit judge (New Lisbon, WI, Jun 3, 2022).
- Jeff German — investigative journalist (Las Vegas, NV, Sep 3, 2022).
- Melissa Hortman & Mark Hortman — MN House speaker emerita and spouse (MN, Jun 14, 2025).
- Charlie Kirk — conservative activist (Orem, UT, Sep 10, 2025).
As of August 31, 2025, 302 people have been killed and 1,354 people have been wounded in 309 mass shootings in the United States.
There have been 9 school shootings this year that resulted in injuries or deaths, according to an Education Week analysis. There have been 230 such shootings since 2018. There were 39 school shootings with injuries or deaths last year. There were 38 in 2023, 51 in 2022, 35 in 2021, 10 in 2020, and 24 each in 2019 and 2018.
**From the early 1950’s when I was born until 1963 I cannot find any public figure killings.
Since January 2, 1997
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