Pigeonholing is part of human nature. We all try to interpret data by placing it into categories. It is a shorthand method for dealing with different facets of the world.
For example, humans prefer "yes" or "no" answers. They don't like shades of gray or probability equations. Those are too difficult to process. They prefer answers in black or white because then the responses to them become easier.
Hence categorization. It's actually a survival trait.
When a person sees a snake, it is imperative that they react immediately rather than take time pondering whether or not it is deadly. Therefore they categorize all snakes as "potentially deadly" so that they can react quickly.
It may not be perfectly accurate, but it is better to err on the side of caution.
This site is really starting to concern me lately.
You have to take the bad with the good. Some people here are sensible, some people here are less so. We are a cross section of a large group of people, and it's very unlikely any of us are perfect. :)
I think you’re missing my point.
Identity politics is a decidedly liberal trait. To liberals, you’re not an American, you’re a “Jewish American”, or an “African American”, or whatever. Rush Limbaugh has spoken about this quite a bit.
But my larger point is that the conversation here on FR has really coarsened over recent years. You haven’t been here on FR that long, so maybe that’s not obvious to you. IMHO, the site has grown less about conservatism, and more about populism, and there’s an increasingly disturbing amount of hate here. I doubt that it’s JimRob that has changed - just the type and attitudes of people that post here.