Not so polarized?

The above graphic (found via Darwinfish 2) summarizes some of the data from this survey.  Not surprisingly given the current polarized climate, large numbers of people say they wouldn't date or otherwise associate with someone who supports the "other side" politically.  What was most striking to me, though, was how much lower the "would not" numbers are on the Republican side.

This seems counter-intuitive.  The right-wing blogosphere endlessly brands left-wingers as commies, libtards, perverts, traitors to "real America", etc -- if you read it at all, you've seen what I mean.  Right-wing "news" websites are somewhat less insulting toward liberals as persons, but still generally presuppose a state of bitter conflict between two irreconcilable camps, with the enemy (us) being depraved fiends who must be defeated at all costs.  So how is it possible that 69% of Republicans (among college students, anyway), would at least consider dating such monsters?

Remember, though, that those who follow the political blogosphere (right or left) or consume highly-ideological media (Hannity, Maddow, Fox, Daily Kos, etc) are a very small fraction of the total US population.  The extreme polarization does exist, but it may well be concentrated in the most visible and active minority on both sides, with such hostility being lower among the broad mass of people who are less engaged with politics.  After all, it makes sense that those who are most focused on politics, most dogmatic in their stances, and most convinced of the evil of the "other side", would be most likely to seek out media with similar views or to write political blogs.

It will be objected that this was a survey of college students specifically, who are more likely to be open-minded.  But in my experience, it's younger people who are more prone to black-and-white thinking, more dogmatically certain of the correctness of their views, more likely to demonize those who think differently as bigots, haters, Nazis, commies, etc.  The capacity for nuance, for questioning one's own assumptions, for seriously considering the viewpoint of an opponent, etc, seem to develop with maturity.  Of course a substantial number of people never mature in this sense (and it's from among those people that the highly polarized, politically-engaged minority is drawn), but many do.  So it's at least possible that the general population, particularly on the right, resembles the surveyed college students in being much less hateful and polarized than our media and internet landscape suggests.

That's not to say, of course, that the 69% of right-wing students who would consider dating a liberal are completely open-minded and ready to join in a round of kumbaya-singing with the left.  It's more likely that they still consider left-wing political views completely wrong-headed, but merely attach far less importance to political views in evaluating a potential partner (or in life generally) than highly-ideological people do.  But this would still be a hopeful sign that the problem of polarized attitudes is less daunting than we picture it.

Just as one data point, my own posts last year expressing disgust with the "woke" lunacy on the left (such as this one) provoked a flurry of supportive e-mails from readers who never post comments here or, as best I can tell, express their views in public forums at all -- and the first one swearing off politics as a routine topic here led to only about a 15% drop in weekly page views (which has since recovered).  And as best I can tell, my readership doesn't skew particularly young.

I'm not saying that the situation is truly symmetrical.  Lunatic-fringe views are more dangerous and more widespread (and have more of a grip on actual politicians) on the right than on the left, though the gap is clearly narrowing.  But it's a difference of degree.

It would hardly be surprising if growing numbers of normal people are as exhausted and repulsed by the scorched-earth, all-out-war, the-other-side-is-absolute-evil mentality of the US political sphere these days as I am, and want to disengage from it, especially in their personal lives -- and that they are also increasingly aware that the "other side" is less of a problem than the minorities of extremist crazies on both sides.

o o o o o

The soreness and blurred vision in my right eye are slowly improving -- too slowly, but clearly improving.  I have a follow-up appointment tomorrow afternoon.