Saturday, April 18, 2015

Partisan animus exceeds racial hostility


Dana Milbank's article in today's WaPo is truly interesting; it brings to light something that I was feeling in my bones, but was not able to prove.  Here are a couple of paragraphs from the article that summarize the point under discussion: 
It has long been agreed that race is the deepest divide in American society. But that is no longer true, say Shanto Iyengar and Sean Westwood, the academics who led the study. Using a variety of social science methods (for example, having study participants review résumés of people that make both their race and party affiliation clear), they document that “the level of partisan animus in the American public exceeds racial hostility.”
Americans now discriminate more on the basis of party than on race, gender or any of the other divides we typically think of — and that discrimination extends beyond politics into personal relationships and non-political behaviors. Americans increasingly live in neighborhoods with like-minded partisans, marry fellow partisans and disapprove of their children marrying mates from the other party, and they are more likely to choose partners based on partisanship than physical or personality attributes.
The sad and depressing fact is that one of the authors of the study sees no end in sight.  

6 comments:

JIm said...

I agree with the premise even though I am in a mixed marriage with a staunch Democrat who is a member of the NEA. As a glimmer of hope; even Adams and Jefferson reconciled toward the end of their lives.

JIm said...

Even today one would think that it is at the very least inappropriate to accept money from foreign govts while holding public office as secretary of State. Many would call it bribery which should be prosecuted. To fully appreciate the gravity of the situation, imagine it was done by Chaney or Condelizza Rice.

JIm said...

Liberalism ran amok in Wisconsin. Democratic politicians used "john Doe" investigations to stage midnight raids on private homes of people who knew and supported Scott Walker. This was something that you would expect in Nazi Germany, not in Wisconsin America. Chisholm, the liberal prosecutor who lost an election to Scott Walker belongs in jail.

This type of behavior may explain some of the bad feelings between the parties.

Read the story on RealClearPolitics.

JIm said...

Hillary seems to think that the economy has "stalled out", casting aspersion on Obamanomics. The administration does not like her comments apparently thinking that a sub 2% GDP recovery is great.

Lally said...

interesting, thanks for posting Tom

JIm said...

The base is up at Loveland Ski Area where I have a pass. We are now at 79" with 318" total this year. I understand that misreading of climate data, claiming warming, is under investigation.