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The biggest political problem in America, explained in one chart
- anigbrowl 8y agoIf the problem of polarization is ever to be addressed, we have to figure out how to talk to people who don’t just disagree about the best way to solve problems, but disagree about what the problems are to begin with. Available research suggests that exposing people to differing points of view (absent agreement about shared goals etc) tends to cause them to become more polarized, not less. It's all very well asking 'how do we talk to people' but the reality is that a large chunk of the population no longer subscribes to consensus reality and actively resists or interferes with the distribution of information and resources. There is a lot of money to be made in misleading people and the 'marketplace of ideas' is failing along multiple vectors, perhaps because of an over-reliance on finance as the measure of all things.
- bediger4000 8y agoThis reads like just more "both sides" lazy journalism. It's just a comparison of how self-identified Republicans and Democrats feel about the importance of various issues. TL;DR (and obviously) It shows differences. The vox author takes this as an opportunity to plead for both sides to come together, although that's covered with a fig leaf or two of verbiage. If this poll has been done over a period of time, we could see how the self-identified party alignments shifted with time. Party members differ right now on which issues even matter, great. How has the importance of those same issues varied over time, by self-identified party members. That would let you draw a conclusion about polarization. This article overreaches.