Where did or who started the current culture war? (Levin, solutions, Pennsylvania)

[Bronxguyanese]

Originally Posted by Phil75230

Culture wars have always been with us. There are two places where it started:

(1) The in-group made it socially acceptable (if not moral) to mistreat out-group members. Meaning, they said it was appropriate to treat the out-group with second-class respect at best, murder them at worst -- not to mention the whole card deck of attitudes between those two extremes (belittlement, bullying [hostility, abuse], discrimination, segregation, persecution / lynching, enslavement).

(2)The out-group started challenging the in-group's claimed right to mistreat them

This has been going on for centuries, if not thousands of years. It'll stop (if ever) when our culture stops believing that kneejerk distaste for a person who's unappealing but nitpicky traits are not appropriate grounds for castigating others as "inferior" or otherwise distasteful.

But this time. The culture war is far more toxic than the ones before. Also thier are multiple sides and plenty of Infighting in echo chambers. Example. Sjws being anti white male, even if one is a sjw white male, he will be target. Than you have schools of feminism fighting each other.

[Phil75230]

The 1960s/early70s was a lot more tumultuous than today (Civil Rights, Antiwar, radically changing social values, domestic terrorism).

Iraq-Afghanistan -- Vietnam
Civil rights for GLBQs and TG/TS --- Civil Rights for women and racial and religious minorities
Fear of Muslims --- Fear of non-Christian "cults"
Trump pandering to right-wingers--Nixon pandering to right-wingers
Digital Surveillance -- COINTELPRO
SJW's --- Hippies, Peaceniks
Giving "freebies" (health care, education) to all --- Giving "freebies" to the very poor
Alyssa Milano -- Rob Reiner (I'm not mentioning Jane Fonda because Milano never did visit an enemy nation and cheer on enemy shooting at US planes. Major difference in an otherwise good parallel).
Over 50's mad at changes in social values -- Over 50s mad at changes in social values

Sounds like history repeating itself like bad fashion trends.

[Eumaois]

Originally Posted by Phil75230

The 1960s/early70s was a lot more tumultuous than today (Civil Rights, Antiwar, radically changing social values, domestic terrorism).

Iraq-Afghanistan -- Vietnam
Civil rights for GLBQs and TG/TS --- Civil Rights for women and racial and religious minorities
Fear of Muslims --- Fear of non-Christian "cults"
Trump pandering to right-wingers--Nixon pandering to right-wingers
Digital Surveillance -- COINTELPRO
SJW's --- Hippies, Peaceniks
Giving "freebies" (health care, education) to all --- Giving "freebies" to the very poor
Alyssa Milano -- Rob Reiner (I'm not mentioning Jane Fonda because Milano never did visit an enemy nation and cheer on enemy shooting at US planes. Major difference in an otherwise good parallel).
Over 50's mad at changes in social values -- Over 50s mad at changes in social values

Sounds like history repeating itself like bad fashion trends.

I am FB friends with an Eng. dub voice of anime named Rob Mungle and he resembles Mr. Reiner.

[tripleh]

Originally Posted by Phil75230

Every time I hear "America First", I think "America should just go it alone and not give a damn about what other nations think". All while forgetting there's a big difference between legitimate self-interest and being a selfish bastard. If "America First" comes to be, then America would be a nation I'd be ashamed to be part of.

You are welcome to move to a socialist hellhole country as there are plenty to choose from. Can we recommend Venezuela?

[ohio_peasant]

Much of this "culture war" business started in the 1980s. Does anyone remember Pat Buchanan, who challenged the late Papa Bush for the 1992 nomination? His "culture war" speech - nominally a concession-speech - was an incendiary provocation. Two years later, Republicans captured the House, with the pugilistic Newt Gingrich as their speaker. Newt pulled no punches. From then on, each side escalated. Bill Clinton worked his wiles to get some compromise bills passed, but that was really the end of any pretense or semblance of bipartisan comity.

For decades, the incendiary topic was Roe v. Wade. While rabid partisans still cling to that topic, the latest wedge seems to be immigration. It is the emerging principal issue for the 2020 campaign - and, depending on who wins, maybe also the 2024 campaign.

I don't believe in prospects for a civil war. But neither am I comfortable with an uncivil peace.

[HockeyMac18]

Political polarization started on its current trajectory in the 90's:

Political Polarization, 1994-2017 | Pew Research Center


And lol at all of the talk of a civil war... This forum...

[HockeyMac18]

Originally Posted by ohio_peasant

Much of this "culture war" business started in the 1980s. Does anyone remember Pat Buchanan, who challenged the late Papa Bush for the 1992 nomination? His "culture war" speech - nominally a concession-speech - was an incendiary provocation. Two years later, Republicans captured the House, with the pugilistic Newt Gingrich as their speaker. Newt pulled no punches. From then on, each side escalated. Bill Clinton worked his wiles to get some compromise bills passed, but that was really the end of any pretense or semblance of bipartisan comity.

For decades, the incendiary topic was Roe v. Wade. While rabid partisans still cling to that topic, the latest wedge seems to be immigration. It is the emerging principal issue for the 2020 campaign - and, depending on who wins, maybe also the 2024 campaign.

I don't believe in prospects for a civil war. But neither am I comfortable with an uncivil peace.

Yep. And you can see it in the data. See Pew research.

[ohio_peasant]

Originally Posted by HockeyMac18

Yep. And you can see it in the data. See Pew research.

That's an interesting graphic... it would appear from that source, that polarization (lack of overlap) didn't change much from 1994 to 2004. Indeed, the main change was the aggregate moving towards the left. But then, between 2004 and 2011, there was a massive increase in polarization, in the sense of intersection between the two camps markedly declining, with enlargement at both ideological extremes.

[jambo101]

Limbaugh/Kimead/Carr/Levin/Coulter/ FOX have been spewing hate toward Democrats for years, they have to bear some of the responsibility for todays divided country.

[Natural510]

Limbaugh, O'Reilly and right-wing media using the "with us or against us" mentality regarding singular issues. It largely took the grey area out of politics and made everyone choose a team they'd be loyal to no matter what.