The United States is more politically polarized then ever before.
Members of Congress may not come to the floor armed with pistols as they did in the days leading up to the Civil War, but their words are as toxic as any time since then. And we are — in many ways — a more divided nation than any time since then.
In interviews with political leaders, media analysts, and people in communities around the country, ABC News found what appears to be a new phenomenon: the polarization is feeding on itself. It’s not just politicians, business or religious leaders, liberals or conservatives — or the media: It’s each of us. And it’s alarming.
Bill Bishop, a reporter for the Austin-American Statesman newspaper in Texas, conducted a three-year investigation into America’s divide. Bishop reached back over the last 14 presidential election cycles and counted Republican and Democratic votes in all 3,100 American counties. The research yielded some startling information. “There’s a steady trend line of the country pulling apart, becoming more politically segregated. We call this “The Big Sort,” said Bishop.
Members of Congress may not come to the floor armed with pistols as they did in the days leading up to the Civil War, but their words are as toxic as any time since then. And we are — in many ways — a more divided nation than any time since then.
In interviews with political leaders, media analysts, and people in communities around the country, ABC News found what appears to be a new phenomenon: the polarization is feeding on itself. It’s not just politicians, business or religious leaders, liberals or conservatives — or the media: It’s each of us. And it’s alarming.
Bill Bishop, a reporter for the Austin-American Statesman newspaper in Texas, conducted a three-year investigation into America’s divide. Bishop reached back over the last 14 presidential election cycles and counted Republican and Democratic votes in all 3,100 American counties. The research yielded some startling information. “There’s a steady trend line of the country pulling apart, becoming more politically segregated. We call this “The Big Sort,” said Bishop.
This documentary is just another perfect example on just how extremely important education really is. Ignorance is a byproduct of our failing education system. When 2 people disagree it means someone is wrong, maybe both, but most definitely one person is wrong. No one is ignorant based solely on his or her beliefs. Ignorance comes from a personā??s inability to understand the facts, evidence and witnesses to a particular problem.
Thatā??s what courts and trials do, they search for the truth by way of examining all the evidence, data and testimony. This is what Americans are forgetting to do. We need more open discussions so that everyone can make logical decisions based on all the known facts, evidence, data and witnesses, without using personal and selfish beliefs as a reason to understand. Please, let the power of God and not the power of our own ignorance be the reason for our demise. We all share the same values. The problem is that some people define their values based on religious beliefs, this is wrong because values and religious beliefs are two separate things. We must define our values as what is right for everyone, what is good for everyone, what is good behavior and what is good conduct.
Posted 08/03/08 by Simone
I disagree with the premise of the film completely. I’ve spent the past 4 years researching and producing a documentary called “American Feud: A History of Conservatives and Liberals” (http://www.americanfeud.org) that takes a non-partisan look at the history of liberalism and conservatism. More often than not we found most people have views far more nuanced and complex then this simplistic view would profess. We may be poorly served by ideologues, but we are not being torn apart.
Posted 07/28/08 by Cheyne Omatic
The advertisements were an unwelcome intrusion during the film.