It’s election season (in case you haven’t noticed—haha), and the local, state, and national marketing campaigns (about candidates, initiatives, tax measures, etc.) are at full throttle (television, social media, digital and print ads, yard signs, newspapers, town halls, rallies, etc.), and they are using every conceivable tactic you can imagine (attack ads, fear mongering, opposition research, character assassination, spreading lies, dog whistles, guilt by association, polarizing wedge issues, strategic timing of scandalous revelations, the echo chamber effect, manipulating sound bites, astroturfing, etc.) to make a final plea for your vote.

Last year, the Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued an advisory on loneliness as being one of the top health threats to Americans' health and well-being (Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation). The advisory noted that the impact of social isolation on mortality is similar to that caused by smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day. Loneliness not only increased the risk of heart disease, dementia, stroke, and premature death, but it is very expensive (accounting for more than $6.7 billion in excess Medicare spending annually).

This last week I listened to a mini inspirational speech on the "Importance of Nothing" by Nick Saban, sportscaster, analyst, and former and future hall of fame football coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide. Here is what he said:

This note might come across as a little different or perhaps even a bit weird from me, so hang in there until the end.

This last Saturday, I had the privilege of speaking to 44 Young Adults from Living Hope Bible Church (Issaquah) at their weekend retreat. I met their pastor, Joe Lum during COVID and we encouraged each other and exchanged ideas with other pastors about how our churches were navigating the onerous COVID restrictions.

I saw the new movie Reagan this week, and it was inspirational and moving. I highly recommend it. It made me recall one of my favorite jokes President Reagan used to tell.