At first glance, these two men might not have much in common. One is in his 50s, the other in his 30s. One is a scientist, the other an insurance broker. One is a flat-earther, the other is a globeliever (someone who believes that the shape of the Earth is a round globe rather than a flat disc).

But despite all their differences, these two men have managed to forge an unlikely friendship in an increasingly divided and polarized society.

“We first met at church,” says Paul Conley, flat-earther and physicist by profession. “We stayed for lunch after the sermon, and started talking. Eventually he brought up the earth-shape controversy, and told me that he believed in a round earth. That definitely came as a shock to me at the time. I had never met a round-earther before, but I still had many prejudices against them in my heart.”

“That’s true,” agrees Richard Holcomb, insurance agent and globeliever. “When you go online nowadays, there is so much extreme rhetoric on both sides, that it’s really easy to get swept up in the maelstrom of hatred. Like, when I go on a round Earth Facebook group, I’ll see people calling flat-earthers ‘stupid’ or ‘brainwashed.’ And those are among the nicer things you see online. Before I met Paul, I thought like that too, to be honest. Our friendship showed me that your opinion about the shape of the earth has nothing to do with being stupid, nor does it make you a bad person. Paul is a damn good physicist, but more importantly, he’s a damn good friend!”

At this point Paul picks up again to say, “It’s really an issue of division and polarization in this country. People don’t talk to each other anymore, only about each other. I think that’s really dangerous. When people are too focused on being right, they eventually stop seeing people on the other side as human. I think it’s time that we stop trying to ‘own’ each other, and instead start to listen to each other again.”

Richard empathically nods and adds, “It’s true! Only when we learn to set aside our differences can we work together and make the world a better place for everyone. And that’s really what’s necessary right now. Climate change, pollution and nuclear war are a serious threat to the world, no matter what shape it has.”

Paul says that he hopes that their friendship will inspire people all around the disc to see each other as human again, and to settle their disagreements in a more respectful and humane way.

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