Posted on 03/05/2024 11:05:01 AM PST by SeekAndFind
Millions of Americans, depressed by the ideological divide in America, harbor a wish that something or someone can bridge this divide.
This wish is understandable. But it is fantasy. The divide is unbridgeable. One might as well wish that daily consumption of a hot fudge sundae will lead to weight loss.
To cite a few samples:
How are we to bridge the gap between those who believe men can become women and women can become men and those who don't believe this? Between those who believe men menstruate and those who believe only women menstruate?
How are we to bridge the divide between those who believe "colorblind" is a racist notion and those who believe "colorblind" is the antidote to racism?
How are we to bridge the divide between those who believe Israel is the villain and Hamas is the victim and those who believe Israel is the victim and Hamas, which openly states its dedication to annihilating Israel and its Jewish inhabitants, is the villain, morally indistinguishable from the Nazis?
How are we to bridge the divide between those who believe young children should be brought to drag queen shows and those who believe this sexualization -- and sexual confusion -- of children is morally detestable?
How are we to bridge the divide between those who believe reducing the number of police will reduce violent crime and those who believe reducing the number of police will increase violent crime?
How are we to bridge the divide between those who believe in suppressing free speech if they deem any given speech "hateful" or "misinformation" and those who believe in free speech?
Every one of these positions is mutually contradictory. And this is just a partial list.
Ironically, even those who hold these mutually contradictory positions agree that these positions are unbridgeable. Only the naive (usually meaning non-left liberals) believe otherwise.
I recommend that any American who believes the left-right gap is bridgeable read the comments submitted by New York Times readers to any column that discusses a left or right position. These comments are a superb indicator of what those on the left, including liberals (I often distinguish between liberalism and leftism) believe. To submit a comment to a New York Times article or column, one must be a subscriber to the New York Times. So, virtually all those who comment are on the left, graduated from college and have enough disposable income to subscribe to the New York Times.
This came to my attention again this past week when reading all the most popular comments reacting to a column on "Christian nationalism" written by Ross Douthat, the one New York Times columnist who defends Christian conservatives.
"Christian nationalist" is the latest left-wing smear of conservatives. It joins "sexist," "racist," "homophobic," "Islamophobic," "transphobic," "xenophobic," "fascist" and "threat to our democracy" as the left's way of smearing -- rather than responding to, let alone debating -- those with whom progressives differ.
Douthat wrote an intelligent column explaining four distinctive conservative Christian positions and groups.
The comments rated highest on the list of "Reader Picks" are not only left-wing; they are irrational. Few, if any, actually define "Christian nationalism." They simply declare conservative Christians "Christian nationalists," just as they declare "transphobic" anyone who opposes hormone blockers for minors or opposes men who say they are women competing in women's sports.
These comments also reveal a lack of self-awareness I believe is a defining characteristic of leftism. Nearly every commenter writes that any American who seeks to advance policies rooted in Judeo-Christian values is a Christian nationalist and therefore a "threat to democracy." But if you seek to advance policies or laws rooted in a secular value system, that is perfectly in accord with American democracy.
"We progressives can advance our agenda based on our values, but when our opponents promote their values from a biblical perspective, they threaten democracy." In other words, leftists can bring their values into American life, but conservative Christians (and Orthodox Jews) may not.
As for the lack of self-awareness, the Left never perceives itself as imposing its values. The Left forced as many Americans as possible to get the frequently harmful COVID-19 vaccine. The Left forced young people who were at minimal risk from the virus to get vaccinated and forced children to miss school for nearly two years. But New York Times readers do not see themselves as imposing their values on Americans. In their minds, they never "threaten democracy"; only conservative Christians who wanted open churches and open schools did. And they never explain how, if a majority of the citizenry wants and votes for a particular value (or candidate) deemed conservative, democracy is "threatened." Isn't that the very definition of democracy -- the candidate or policy with the most votes wins?
If you still think the left-right divide is bridgeable, it is only because it is too painful to confront the tragic reality of contemporary American life: Today's left-right divide is at least as great as the North-South divide before and during the Civil War. The only thing that remains the same is that it was the Democratic Party that opposed freedom then, and it is the Democratic Party that opposes freedom today.
“How are we to bridge the gap between those who believe men can become women and women can become men and those who don’t believe this?”
How are we to bridge the gap between those who believe in global warming and those who are sane?
Realistic headline-—”The good - evil divide is not bridgeable”.
That is why I opposed any Presidential debates this year.
There is nothing to debate.
There is nothing to discuss.
The two sides have competing narratives, competing agendas, competing language.
There is no “middle”. There is no “fair”.
Those days are gone.
He’s probably correct but I think it is basically the outer 15-20% on either side which has no interest in sharing a nation with the other side. The majority still are happy to share the nation...to remain joined.
There are truly two Americas, it is as if the multiverse has burst through and the portal cannot be closed.
The author didn’t mention abortion; one side who thinks it is outright murder and those who celebrate it. That can never be reconciled. And one more thing:
“rooted in Judeo-Christian values”
There’s no such thing.
Delusion Will Never Defeat Biology!
Today’s culture of affirmation is mere delusion and mental illness that is doing a disservice to addressing the mental health needs of children.
Now people are identifying as Cats and Dogs.
TORRANCE STEPHENS, PHD, FEB 25, 2024
When a person has or maintains a false belief or judgment about overt and objective external reality, and holds such views in defiance despite unquestionable authentication to the contrary, clinicians and therapists appropriately describe this as delusion and reflective of some form of mental disorder.
Delusions are beliefs that are plainly untrue and that indicate an abnormality in the affected person’s content of thought. More problematic is these individuals are positively assured that the delusion is real.
From a mental health perspective, delusions may be indicative of multiple mental disorders including but not limited to Psychotic disorders, substance-induced psychotic disorder, Bipolar disorder, Major depressive disorder, delusional disorder, schizophreniform disorder, shared psychotic disorders, brief psychotic disorder, and several others. Typically these refer to individuals who show a diminished or distorted sense of reality resulting in the inability to tell what is real from what is unreal. If identifying yourself as clown gender isn’t a sign of sever mental disorder then nothing is.
Delusion Will Never Defeat Biology
Very simple-
War and impoverishment
or
Peace and prosperity.
Dems are headed towards being a boutique party of the coastal elites and little else.
They had no reconciliation after the massive losses under Obama-they kicked the can down the road with Lerner, Russia, Ukraine, scamdemic and they may cheat their way to win again in 2024. It does have a pay the piper end date eventually.
Dear Dennis,
See my tag line.
Best,
L
I’m surprised that Mr. Praeger did not put the evil, vile, and reprehensible “Murdering babies” at #1 on his list of divides.
Since Obama I have thought the country is going to Balkanize. The sheer number of people on either side of the good/evil divide means there is no thought minority that can be suppressed. Good people will not kill or suppress 60 million leftists and leftist are likely unable to kill or suppress 60 million good people. The only thing left is a split.
Then the majority that is willfully blind doesn’t matter. The left is willing to do whatever it takes to attain power AND wield it. The right wants to fight that. Anyone in the middle is road kill.
The Issue is Never the Issue, The Issue is always The Revolution.
Yup, the left is in a state of perpetual war.
How “no such thing”?
There’s so many examples. Those who believe abortion should be allowed up to the ninth month, or even after the baby is born alive, and those who are pro-life. Those who believe there are 57 genders, and those who believe there are two. Those who think the government should go door to door and collect everybody’s guns, and those who believe in the right to bear arms. Those who think the border should be wide open and those who want a wall and deportations. Etc., etc. There is no way on God’s green earth the two sides will ever come together. The gulf, the gap is just too wide.
My joke is that the definition of a “moderate” these days is someone who wants to put tampons in half of the school boys rooms.
;-)
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