There was a discussion on today's Face the Nation, with Bob Schiffer, about the polarization of politics in the US. It started to head downhill in a well-travelled rut toward an often-trumpeted one-dimensional discussion about "the red and the blue," until David Brooks made a show-saving comment. He said that we're actually less polarized on most issues now, with the exception of attitudes about the President himself. Schiffer and the others began to fumble around urgently in their priestly robes after this obvious display of good sense undercut their entire thesis, trying desperately to come up with some tidbit that reestablished their status as sages of the media's divine order. But they just came off looking like the driver who pays more attention to the rear view mirror than the road.
Posted by Demosophist at December 28, 2003 11:12 PM | TrackBackIn light of America's own history, you are quite correct in citing David Brooks's comment. We are indeed less polarized than we have been in past eras. All one needs to do is to look at the kind of political namecalling that existed here in the 19th century, particularly during the Civil War period. Name calling has descended to calling the president a Nazi, obviously by people who know nothing of fascism and what the Nazis were really all about. But that's about it. Lincoln's own Secretary of War called his employer an ugly gorilla. The ad hominem attacks were far worse and much coarser than they are now.
ekw
Posted by: Ned at January 1, 2004 09:31 AM