I read this article recxently in WaPo:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/09/06/america-political-divide-overstated-media/

The title is: “We’re not as divided as we think”

I would retitle that: “We’re not as divided as we are made to think.” Or just, “We prefer not to think.”

And if I do a Google search on “America not divided”, I get A LOT of articles that say the same, and each one is backed by data!

So the percieved divide is simply a social tool, perpetrated by traditional media (you can’t do this on social media, unless you, uh…supress 1/2 the posts). Why do they do this? A: sells newspapers. It’s never been any different. And we always knew this. So what happened to our minds?

Well, we lost anywhere to gain perspective – any voice of reason. Take the example of Steve Colbert: there is, in fact, a Colbert I and and Colbert II. Colbert I was a stand up comic, funny in his jibes, which were actually balanced: a lot of people got jibed, even though the majority was aimed at the “Right.”

Colbert II is unbalanced. Just watch some of the monologes. They are like some dicatator, spewing line after line of pure insult. He doesn’t even exude a sense of humor: he is “mad”, in the Poe sense. And his audience! They too are mad! They roar with anger and hatred, and any laughter is forced. But the key thing to notice is that the explode, on time, at every remark. Check it out. It’s a little weird.

My point is, comedians used to give us a break from drilling the “main message.” But not anymore. Everyone on the old media seems to drink the same Kool Aid.

But read the articles: we do indeed share the same core beliefs. The polarity is really only at the extreme fringes, but, reported as though it were the center.