I’d like to invite everyone to join me on Coffee Party Radio this Sunday. I will be hosting this 2-hour show debating gun control.

The Gun Debate – Special 2-hr radio show hosted by Annabel Park on Sunday, 1/13, 3:30pm – 5:30pm ET

Click HERE to go to the radio page to read about the show, listen live on Sunday, or listen as an archive.

Show description: Annabel Park will host a special 2-hour show about the gun debates. Some of her guests include people who have been engaged in a civil and constructive debate for about three weeks in the comments section of her viral blog (over 50k likes and 1100 comments), Replying to pro-gun friends.

Join us by calling in: (646) 929-2495. To request to speak, press 1.

For Story of America, Eric Byler and I created some videos on the gun control debate. One of them went viral after being selected by Upworthy. It currently has over 70k views.

People seem to think that I dismantled Larry Ward’s argument that teachers should be armed. I’m not sure if I dismantled it, but I like the video because we had a civil and respectful conversation about it. What do you think?

I’ve been really impressed with the level of discussion in the comments section of the blog post, Replying to pro-gun friends. I think  something important is going on. My hope is that we need to and are ready to discuss gun violence in America in a civil and informed manner. I think some of the exchanges in the comments section prove that. I haven’t read through all the comments yet. I plan to do it before the show.

During the show, I also want to reflect on my recent experience delving into the gun control debate after Newtown. I have felt for a long time that we need better regulation of gun purchases in America, but I hadn’t thought it in much detail. After Newtown, I released some of my frustration in finding it difficult to talk about it in a calm and reasonable manner by writing Replying to pro-gun friends. I wrote it because I wanted to challenge some of the persistent talking points from pro-gun advocates. Because the essay went viral, I found myself thinking more about the issue of gun control and how we’re talking about it.

I also wrote an essay, The Zombification of America, published on Huffington Post last week. In it, I explore my fear that we are becoming more divided and even alienated from each other. I’m worried that we seem to value each others’ roles and voices less and less in our society. I think there are some terrible social and political consequences to that sense of alienation. I’d like to discuss this as well.

I hope you join us on Sunday, January 13th at 3:30pm – 5:30pm ET by clicking HERE.