“Before it was, ‘I don’t agree with you,’ but now it has evolved into this new thing that is much more aggressive, ‘don’t even say something that is counter to

“Before it was, ‘I don’t agree with you,’ but now it has evolved into this new thing that is much more aggressive, ‘don’t even say something that is counter to what I believe,’” This sums up rather well what I believe is a new era of righteous indignation in America. This is not isolated to just America, or Americans, but it's not something we've really had to deal with before. That righteous indignation manifests itself in how we react to people we disagree with, whether it's over a parking space, or something someone else does somewhere in the world that we don't like. The new belief is not "I disagree with you, go away" it's now "I disagree with you, and I'm going to do everything in my power to hurt you, destroy your reputation, get you fired from your job, and cause you as much pain as I can, likely from a distance." It borders on a collective superiority complex. As someone who has worked in Congress, now as a lobbyist, I think this began with the leadership of both parties. No longer do our elected officials find way to reach common ground on public issues. Instead, both parties, their leadership, and through their public relations and voter base, have turned to a tactic of "attack, defame, and destroy." Washington has become dysfunctional because of this righteous indignation, and it has permeated down to everyone else, made exponentially possible by the internet. I wish there was an easy solution, but I don't see one.