The Continental Divide: Political Hysteria

In one of Abraham Lincoln’s most popular speeches, he said, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”  He was actually quoting the Bible…Mark 3:25.  Lincoln went on to predict the US would not fall, but would instead succumb to one side or the other.  The issue of course was slavery, and we know which side won.  But we also know what the country went through and what the cost was to defeat slavery…625,000 dead Americans.  Was it worth it?  Of course it was…slavery was arguably the biggest abomination in our nation’s history.  I only say “arguably” because of the point of this post…arguing has become our new national pastime.

160 years later, we have a similar divide in our country.  I’d say the issues are silly by comparison.  But these issues are big enough to result in the most vitriol in American politics since I’ve been breathing.  Outrage (and regular rage), name-calling, finger-pointing, death threats, harassment, boycotting, banning, canceling, shaming, impeachments (yeah, plural)…and all that is just from the actual politicians! 

I’m all for fair and civil discussions.  Where would we be without debate about important issues?  I suppose we’d have to settle everything with violence…trial by combat maybe.  Trial by chess?  Checkers?  I don’t consider the filibuster fair or civil.  It’s the equivalent of screaming over another person so they cannot be heard.  And the Democrats’ walk-out in the Texas house last year…same.  They may as well have unfriended Republicans on Farcebook.  Each of these tactics is childish in my opinion and has no place in debate among adults. 

The amateur politicians are much worse.  Their protests become riots which typically include destruction of property and violence…basically carnage.  I’m sure social media would be the same if damage and violence were possible.  As it is it’s a playground where anyone with a slight interest in politics or current events become deranged lunatics incapable of debating any issue without foaming at the mouse and screaming at the top of their keyboards.

I don’t like to argue…I’m not very good at it.  I concede far too easily.  Whether its because I don’t want any hard feelings or because I tend to understand the other party’s point of view, I’m not really invested in changing anyone’s mind about anything.  If you ask me, I might give you my opinion…and I might not, especially if I think it’ll cause a ruckus.  Some of my childhood friends (you know who you are) may remember my default concession statement, “You think what you think, and I’ll think what I think.”  Admittedly, it was a pretty stupid thing to say, but it was enough to end a lot of disagreements.  That’s just me…live and let live.

Some people absolutely revel in arguments and enjoy pissing off people.  I think it has something to do with ego and a desire to dominate others, but maybe its just a passion for influencing peoples’ opinions (and the “pissing off” is only consequential).

Then there’s people who cannot conceive they could ever be wrong.  Or if they can conceive it, they can never admit it.  Its as if there’s a short circuit in the part of their brain which manages empathy and humility.  I will admit its something I don’t fully understand how anyone could see themselves as being so near perfect as to never concede a point of contention.  So, because I can’t understand it, I don’t have much to say about how or why this occurs.  But I will say this:  it seems to be spreading, doesn’t it?

Take this guy for example…a “Facebook friend” I used to have.  Although I never actually knew him, I accepted his fried request because we had mutual friends and went to the same high school.  He’s obviously liberal considering the daily memes he posts (in fact, I suspect he creates these memes himself) constantly bashing Republicans, especially Trump.  I finally took exception and commented about his skewed opinions on several of his posts.  I even went so far as to include a link to my post about bias (On the Bias…Why Your Opinion Does Not Matter) hoping to moderate him a little.  Instead, all it did was offend him and he threatened to delete my comments from his post, which he did…took his ball and went home.  He finally unfriended me, I assume so I can no longer comment on his posts.  Me, the most moderate guy on the internet!  If a moderate opinion drives you to unfriend someone, maybe consider you have a problem.

But how do you know I wasn’t being a biased asshole?  OK, here’s how it went down (in part)…

Unfortunately, my comment on another post was deleted so I am unable to share more, but take my word for it, the most aggressive I got was when I called his opinion “biased” and therefor “unconvincing.”  As you can see, we started off with a miscommunication which is typical on the interwebs.  But then he responded with personal disparaging remarks as well as claiming victimhood considering my “attacks.” There was no response after my final comment which was an attempt to appeal to his leftist nature…all it did was land me in the “unfriend zone.”  I don’t think I convinced him of anything…I suspect this guy has a case of narcissistic personality disorder which makes him incapable of changing his opinions or even acknowledging the validity of other opinions. 

BTW, this altercation was not the inspiration for this particular post.  I had already begun writing about the political divide in America.  But I’d recently published the “On the Bias” post and felt like putting it into action.  And it turned into fodder for this piece…maybe it was fate if you believe in such.

Okay, this is only one example (and, yes, it’s pretty tame compared to the typical altercations found on social media).  But I’d be willing to bet the percentage of people on the interwebs who’ve seen something similar to this in the past year is in the upper 90’s.  You might even have family members who no longer speak due to a political ruckus on the Farcebook.  If you’re one of the few who’ve never seen something like this, consider yourself lucky and go buy a lotto ticket.

Is this current level of animosity higher than in the past?  More than in the eighties?  Nineties?  My grandmother used to call Democrats “rats,” particularly the Kennedys.  But no one stormed any federal buildings in attempts to disrupt election proceedings.  No one wept in the streets when Reagan was elected (or maybe they did, but there was no social media to post to).  Sure, there were protests, even riots.  Now, protests routinely turn to violence and destruction.  And counterprotests become clashes. And seventeen-year-olds carry semi-automatic rifles into protests for self-defense (okay, maybe I didn’t need to use the plurals here).  Yes, the animosity has escalated in the past 30 years or so.

What is the cause of this elevated level of animosity between political parties?  Certainly, the parties have drifted further to the extremes over the past few years.  There’s an all-or-nothing attitude among partisans lately.  People are less willing to compromise.  The line in the sand is wide and deep.  But why?  Why was my “Farcebook Friend” unwilling to listen or discuss? 

Is there such a thing as “political hysteria?”  Something like an irrational attachment to political ethos which transcends a more typical ethos of right and wrong?  Is that a thing?  If not, I think I should invent it (although I guess I’d need some kind of qualification as a political scientist or a psychologist beyond my amateur status).  So here I go to the Google!  Search the term “political hysteria” and you’ll find this little gem from an Arizona editor named Jon Gabriel who says pretty much what I’m saying, only five months earlier (dammit!)… https://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/op-ed/2021/07/10/politics-are-hyperbole-no-wonder-so-many-tune-them-out. Here, Gabriel says politicians are taking every issue to the extreme, calling everything a crisis to the point that no one cares.  Because if everything is a crisis, then nothing is (which is true in my professional experience as a project manager).

It’s the new politics in the misinformation age…declare everything “they” do will lead to the end of democracy, and “they” are traitors!  Like Trump’s now infamous quote on Jan-6th, “We fight like hell. And if you don’t fight like hell, you’re not going to have a country anymore.” Or the “Cancel Culture” sweeping the progressives making a mockery of the idea of freedom of speech, our most sacred American right.

When stuff like this hits the broadband (formerly the “airwaves”), it disseminates across the universe.  Then each one of us has an unconscious decision to make…do I believe this is really worth my time and energy?  A lot of us lately believe yes, it is.  So, we treat it like a fine strain of weed at a Pink Floyd concert (aging myself) and puff, puff, pass it right along to all our friends.  Except it does just the opposite…this is no mellow high.  It’s at this point I find Gabriel incorrect…certainly a few of us stop caring, and if it was all of us, great…problem solved.  But a great number of us care far too much.  The election of 2020 saw the greatest voter turnout in American history (except half of us don’t believe it thanks to the hysteria).  Why would that be if politics was turning us off?  No, it hasn’t turned us off…it’s turned some of us on like a teenage boy who finally hacked the parental controls on his laptop.  More than ever, we welcome the outrage and encourage everyone on our friends list to come along for the ride.  We revel in electronic anger to the point where it spills out onto the street in the form of violence and destruction.  Hence, “hysteria.”  It’s not the term Gabriel should use to describe a condition where people stop caring about politics…try “political apathy.”

An argument could be made for divisiveness in the name of progress.  That was the outcome of the Civil War after all.  Lincoln is considered the greatest president as well as one of the most divisive.  According to this April-2020 article, Trump is number 1 on the divisive scale…The most divisive U.S. presidents, ranked by political scientists CBS News (BTW, I said as much in The Plague and the Downfall of Reason last summer).  FDR was hated for his New Deal.  Al Gore was hated for trying to save the planet.  Obama was hated for Obamacare. The partisanship is so strong, they’ll turn on their own heroes when they say or do something that doesn’t fit the narrative.  Trump was recently booed by a Dallas crowd when he encouraged covid vaccinations and announced he’d taken the covid booster, a personal decision he made for himself.  Not even the messiah is immune.

Look, most everyone is just trying to make the world a better place, either for themselves or for their children, and sometimes even for others.  True, we don’t always agree on how to accomplish this, but maybe we could at least recognize we have commons goals and maybe not sit in judgement and react with anger so much.  When civil discussion deteriorates, what is left but civil war?

It’s a new year, following two terrible years.  Need a resolution to trump the same boring “lose weight and exercise” bullshit you’ve promised since forever?  Try this…

Maybe we should all take a toke and chill a minute before we take it to the broadband to pass along the outrage we heard about on the Farcebook or the “NEWS.”  Maybe stop and ask yourself consciously, “is this really worth my time and energy.”  Ask it three times.  Because maybe it’s not news and maybe it’s just an extension of the political hysteria machines commonly referred to as the Democratic and Republican parties.  And maybe they’re just playing on our emotions and using all of us as pawns to keep themselves in power.  Think about it before reacting to it.

Or maybe just think about it…no reaction needed.  Forget “Lose weight and exercise”…. “Lose hate and realize” is my resolution.

Happy New Year!

-Big Steve