Given the vitriol of our best known commentators, it’s easy to forget there are some pundits promoting conservative Republican or liberal Democrat values without descending into madness. They don’t misrepresent the other side’s positions or name call. They simply present the best case they can for their beliefs and trust the reader make up his or her own mind. It’s a refreshing change of pace. It’s also, in my opinion, a far more effective form of argument. It includes the reader rather than badgers them. It gives them something real to consider rather than something fake to fear. And perhaps most importantly, it reflects the pundit’s faith in his or her argument.

Patrick T. Brown is a master of this sort of writing on the right. (Bill Scher is a master of it on the left). You can read his columns and disagree, but that’s as contrary as you’ll feel. He treats his topics and audience with too much respect to come off as disagreeable. If we had more columnists like him, we wouldn’t be nearly as divided. Until we do have more like him, cut out the polemicists and track down Brown’s backlog. You’ll get more honesty and less heartburn. Who doesn’t want that?