> Pretty much every time I talk to random people in the US, they drop inflammatory remarks to see how I respond, to identify which side of the culture war I am

> Pretty much every time I talk to random people in the US, they drop inflammatory remarks to see how I respond, to identify which side of the culture war I am on, so they can antagonize or befriend me. I ignore these comments, as I am disinterested in the American culture war and its political sports-teamism. Weird. Everyone in my neighborhood avoids politics like the plague. I think my favorite part about where I live is my neighbors. The thing we have most in common with is our community, kids, and the troubles that come with home ownership. We invite eachother over for pool parties and BBQs. My neighbor, who I'm pretty sure is exactly the opposite of me politics-wise (I've heard him talking in the backyard before), nevertheless invites everyone over for labor day and 4th of July. We talk house and neighborhood problems. His kids are only slightly younger than me but we still talk kid stuff. Another neighbor is on a fire safety council (a non-profit) and helps deal with some of the issues with that, and I've helped them with tech stuff before. You wouldn't think it, but he's kinda a nerd himself. This is a 60 year old retired firefighter with a garage full of motorcycles who could probably bench press me but his house is full of legos and star wars stuff. In general, people are very happy to help with problems and cordial. We have a text message thread with about 15 houses on it.