One side now lives in an alternate reality and is forcing somewhat objective people (scientists, FBI) to parrot that reality or face punishment...
And the media megacorps are playing this up hard, really trying to push that divide to get people to view their reactionary bullshit, bringing in the ad revenue. And it's working probably even better than they intended, since Americans seem to hate each other more than they have in almost 150 years.
One party's views have not changed dramatically with time, and still have arguments and discussions grounded in reality.
Another party's views are being shaped by propagandistic forces that have no interested in basing themselves under any realistic interpretation of reality.
One party places anti-immigration rhetoric that completely contradicts the experts' understanding of immigration policies, from experts with all sorts of political backgrounds.
One party denies the entirety of the fields of climate science, environmental science, and has no trouble entertaining Creationist ideals that reject the entirety of the field of biology.
One party rejects our current understanding of policies that reduce violent crime, and incarceration. The other one at the very least has an internal dialogue where positions are based on known statistics.
This repeats itself on and on. The fact that there are people who reject our current understanding of topics on all political sides doesn't mean that there is one party whose political interests are completely disconnected to the point where there are no real internal arguments for logical cohesiveness.
I think you have inadvertently stumbled upon the real fundamental change in politics over my lifetime - it seems a lot more of the younger generations have been brought up to believe the experts.
50 years ago we all knew the experts were a bunch of quacks.
I am not even sure if I am the dunce here for not getting that you wrote it that way on purpose and I'm explaining you your own joke.
Of course that is what everyone ideologically invested in their own side thinks.
And the Democrats? I remember the Democrats laughing at McCain talking about the Russian threat.
> On trade and commerce? Deficits?
Largely the same?
> Military intervention?
Ok sure the Republicans aren’t the war hawks they once were but many of the same neocons are still there biding their time.
The Obama administration warned about the Russian threat. The Republican party has been coopted by it. How does that place any blame on the left when it has been the RNC who's allowed itself to be infiltrated by external actors?
> Largely the same?
The GOP had never been in favor of the tariffs Trump proposes. The current platform is entirely inconsistent.
This is my problem with the people who think it's not a "both sides" issue or that both sides dont have serious issues that makes people want to have nothing to do with their affiliations. Not that they disagree with my personal critiques of the left; but that they are typically so married to their party it is functionally impossible for them to find any fault or willingess to critique their side for the better when it's absolutey called for and necessary. Instead it's a matter of"YOU tell ME what wrong with the party and I'll tell you why you're wrong".
They will turn right around and blame "the other" or explain every failing of their opponents with vigor, with a straight face and not a single hint of irony or self-awareness for things like straight ticket voting or blind partisan loyalty
If you ignore the baggage in your ranks, you be signaled to everyone else it's fine for them to do the same.
No. Obama mocked McCain in the 2012 presidential debates for claiming Russia was a major threat.
“The 1980s are now calling to ask for their foreign policy back because the Cold War has been over for 20 years” - President Obama
The Obama admin only started talking about Russia much later when it became politically convenient.
> The GOP had never been in favor of the tariffs Trump proposes.
The GOP has no ideological problem with tariffs as evidenced by Bush implementing Steel tariffs back in 2002.
If the statement reads as confusing to you, because it lacks any meaningful pointers to identify who it's talking about congratulations on being a rational nuanced thinker..
If it makes perfect sense on the other hand...you've probably been drinking too much "everyone else is wrong but me and people who think like me kool-aid"
Q: I remember when people who disagreed could still be friends. Can't we get along a bit better?
A: (you) No, because people I disagree with are basically Hitler and aren't based in "reality" so we can never be friends.
One side now lives in an alternate reality and is forcing somewhat objective people (scientists, FBI) to parrot that reality or face punishment...
But both sides of political extremes think that. Several people are pointing this out but it doesn't seem to be sticking.
Let me try. I read an interesting story on Hacker News recently about a scientist who gave a talk, and was punished for his views. He wasn't being punished by Trump-like pillars of conservatism. He was talking about discrimination against men and was suspended by his university administrators, because even though there is great consensus amongst scientists that women and men think differently, this 'scientific reality' is completely rejected by one political tribe (but not the other).
See... more or less any extremist criticism you can make of the other tribe can be easily turned around on you.