What if you had the opportunity to understand the perspective of someone you vehemently disagree with politically? Would you invite them in for dinner? That's exactly what Joan Blades, the co-founder of MoveOn.org, and Mark Meckler, co-founder of the Tea Party patriots, did. Blades joined "Salon Now" to detail how it all went down and why the positive interaction inspired her nationwide project "Living Room Conversations," which creates a framework for people to set up in-person or video chats with people holding opposite viewpoints on dozens of social and political issues.

"We keep forgetting that science has shown us that most people make their decisions 90 percent of the time by gut or heart," Blades told Salon. "So we keep thinking that we can argue people, rationally talk people into a different point of view. The reality is that the most likely way people change their views is when they make a real connection." Blades and the project are also featured in the new PBS documentary, "American Creed," hosted by former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.