Alice and George were very good at conflict. They saw it as thinking.

Margaret Heffernan presents the interesting case here on the value of conflict. Too often today is conflict seen as a bad thing. In her TED talk below, Heffernan illustrates what conflict can bring to the table (sometimes uniquely).

I agree that society needs to learn better how to handle, tolerate, and engage in arguments. Afterall, learning is simply the understanding of something that previously went against you.