I knew I would see this from pundits and writers. Salon.com is apparently no exception. Yes, we are a divided America. We've always been a divided America. This mythical America where liberals and conservatives lived in peace and harmony, exchanging ideas over cups of chamomile is pure fiction. World War II is where the country was united, but since then, we've had all manner of division and separation. Liberals fought for basic human rights over the span of several decades. From abolition to women's rights, from voting rights to feminism, liberals have always been at loggerheads with conservatives and the rhetoric is always heated, divisive, and sometimes violent. People have been beaten and have gone to jail. Sure we had a civil war, but we developed a system where we had plenty of ways to get back at our ideological enemies in a civilized manner. This is just another chapter of that eternal struggle and we have a chance to deal a death blow, to push the wave in our favor and render them an obscure party, a relic from the past.
I'm sorry, I know that some feel with a country this divided that somehow we'll be destroyed by some outside force. I've heard many on the left claim that we need two parties with good ideas and that it's not good to have one party in the driver's seat too long. Why? Republicans are dead weight. Tea Partiers are insane and deserve marginalization. Their party is the party of death, of neighbor hating neighbor, of parallel realities where communists have infiltrated government statistics agencies, of racism, and of genocide. They are the party of blind authoritarianism, and as evidenced by the number of Republicans figuring out that the Romney campaign was a get rich scheme for some, they have a serious problem on their hands. Problem is though, I expect them to double down on the crazy. I do not expect them to have any sense of self awareness. Their party could become a minority party as it has become in California.
Thank the sky god.
Let's just call them useless and move on. No grand bargains, no "well they have some good ideas," and certainly no calls to somehow resurrect the old Eisenhower Republicans. Let their party wither on the vine and rejoice for they will soon be defeated. The election was close and not a blowout like I had hoped, but there is absolutely no reason to try and rationalize or negotiate with these people. From personal experience, I know that they're too far beyond redemption and we have to keep going. If the shoe was on the other foot they'd destroy us.
Forward.