What will we wish we had done to stop America's culture war?
 Getty Images  While in the Navy, I spent some time participating in war games. We simulated geopolitical and military scenarios and then had experienced leaders from within and outside government play roles from the president on down. They made decisions to address the circumstances presented, with the goals of protecting America and supporting its interests. An opposing team acted on behalf of other nations and groups. My experience with war gaming was that it didnt provide answers, but insights. As I watch the Republican Party move toward stoking the fires of a culture war in our country, I find myself wondering what the results of that war could look like in just a few years. I think many of our religious, spiritual and philosophical leaders will regret not having done more to help us abandon the battlefield by encouraging and practicing greater inclusivity and tolerance. Christian leaders, in particular, will have to ask themselves if they did enough to oppose American Christian nationalism. Judges and lawyers may well wish they had resisted weaponizing the Constitution and misusing the rule of law to address cultural and religious differences. These differences are often the battle cries in our war. Corporate leaders, shareholders and the wealthy may reflect on their support for reform efforts such as conscious capitalism and be disappointed that they didnt do more. Some current and former military members have used the credibility of their service, and the trust that was given them, to try to provide advantage to one side or another in this culture war. I think they will wish they hadnt become combatants but, instead, had acted as peacemakers, examples and advocates for civility, mutual respect, personal dignity, the rule of law, consensus and compromise. Ill be surprised if many of our politicians dont deeply regret their wins at any cost, their end-justifies-the-means, power-seeking behavior. I also think theyll wish they had respectfully disagreed and demonstrated leadership when facing constituents who demanded they support actions that were guided by fantasy, not facts, and narrow ideology, not the shared values that a diverse, free, self-governing people must have. Many intellectual, think tank, academic and government leaders are trying to help us understand what got us into this war and proposing policy changes that, if enacted and sustained, can get us out of it. Many of todays responsible gun owners may well wish they had raised a voice in opposition to those who argue that largely unconstrained lethal weapon possession is a right of every American that the government must show cause to deny. They may yet truly regret the violence that so many guns in the hands of so many makes possible. Its hard to imagine the media personalities who are the cheerleaders of our cultural conflict feeling regret. The disrespect some of them show for truth and the ideas and perspective of others is a gasoline they pour on the fires of this war. These individuals show no sign of caring about or feeling responsible for the damage they do, so I wonder if remorse is beyond them. We need to stop rewarding them for such behavior. President Biden may well regret limiting himself to traditional approaches in promoting national healing and greater unity. He may wish he had given the American people a shock  a real wake-up call  making it clear that if we dont disengage from this battle with one another now, well all have much to lose, and soon. He could remind us that circumstances in our country can get far worse, and their improvement afterward is not assured. Today, he can lead in creating the time and space for Americans to pause, reflect and make the choice to stop the culture war, listen and re-engage with one another. The president could call upon us all to start building community and participating as citizens in ways that we must invent. He can point us to the tasks of rebalancing our self-governance, economic system and more. The fact that no president since Abraham Lincoln has asked Americans to undertake anything close to such an effort should not deter Biden, if he grasps the moment. I hope that he does. I hope he asks us to start doing what really will be necessary to heal America  and I hope he asks us to do it now. John J. Grossenbacher retired in 2003 as U.S. Navy vice admiral and commander of the U.S. Naval Submarine Forces, following a 33-year naval career. He directed the U.S. Department of Energys Idaho National Laboratory for 10 years, overseeing scientific and engineering research in nuclear and other energy resources, the environment and homeland security.