{"id":6183,"date":"2019-12-10T16:47:01","date_gmt":"2019-12-10T16:47:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cassandravoices.com\/?p=6183"},"modified":"2019-12-10T16:47:01","modified_gmt":"2019-12-10T16:47:01","slug":"bull-moose-american-discourse-dcs-most-interesting-power-couple","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/casswp.eutonom.eu\/index.php\/2019\/12\/10\/bull-moose-american-discourse-dcs-most-interesting-power-couple\/","title":{"rendered":"Bull Moose – In Praise of Uncivil Discourse"},"content":{"rendered":"

When truth is the casualty, everyone suffers.\u00a0 <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

For new Americans, spending Thanksgiving in the U.S. comes as a surprise. It\u2019s the busiest travel time of the year, ranking ahead of Christmas and the 4th<\/sup> of July. While some associate Thanksgiving with shopping bonanzas like Black Friday or Cyber Monday, for most it\u2019s simply an opportunity to spend time with family and friends; watching football or just gathering around the dinner table.<\/p>\n

Given that it\u2019s always the last Thursday of November, it also marks the beginning of the holiday season. A time then to take stock, reflect and make plans for the year ahead, finishing any business before the year closes.<\/p>\n

It is little secret that Americans are becoming ever more polarized politically, in no small part due to the comfortable bubbles with which we surround ourselves, in our day-to-day-lives and online.<\/p>\n

All too easily, we can tune out people with whom we disagree. Except when it comes to Thanksgiving. Sitting around the dinner table, it\u2019s hard to steer conversation away from current events. Issues like climate change, inequality, the composition of the Supreme Court, the mess in DC, what to make of Trump, or even football, bubble up.<\/p>\n

Polarization may also be causing people to fall out with one another over politics: according to Pew research more than eight-out-of-ten U.S. adults (roughly 85%) say political debate in the country has become more negative and less respectful.[i]<\/a><\/p>\n

Interestingly, a lot of Republican voters feel victimized in this regard. By a wide margin, Republicans believe the mainstream of political discourse is more hospitable to Democrats than to the GOP. Interestingly, Dems also think Republicans are more comfortable sharing their viewpoints, but only by a few percentage points.[ii]<\/a><\/p>\n

Given this toxic climate, many choose simply to stay away from any issue that is remotely political, especially given how few people are likely to be dissuaded from their current stance.[iii]<\/a><\/p>\n

The problem is that not taking ownership of political views can be harmful. It begs the question as to whether any democracy built on the free sharing of opinions and facts can survive in the face of this extreme polarization within social media bubbles and alternative facts. The jury is still out.<\/p>\n

It seems as if truth and facts are becoming ever harder to determine. People have warmed to the argument that there are always two sides to every issue.<\/p>\n

But there are plain facts which don\u2019t have two sides \u2013 the truth<\/em>.<\/p>\n

In today\u2019s America, it has become commonplace to argue over facts. In some quarters, it might seem improper to suggest that sea levels are rising, despite the mounting evidence; or that a crowd at an inauguration was smaller than a previous one, or that black unemployment is at an all-time low.<\/p>\n

As in other parts of the world, truth is under attack, muddled by a barrage of special interest and nation states seeking to weaken the very democracy the West is built on. If this sounds alarmist, it is. As an aside \u2013 I suggest you watch Sacha Baron Cohen give his views on social media moguls, and their blatant lack of responsibility with regards to the truth.<\/p>\n