Polarization in the U.S. didn’t rise gradually. A new machine-learning study shows it surged after 2008- but why?

Polarization in the U.S. didn’t rise gradually. A new machine-learning study shows it surged after 2008- but why?

    • artifex@piefed.socialOPEnglish
      12·
      3 days ago

      I feel like it’s a toss up between this (old-school racism) and occupy wall street looking too scary to the bigwigs (who had to amplify racism and invent “woke” as a new wedge)

    • CharlesDarwin@lemmy.worldEnglish
      5·
      3 days ago

      Bingo.

      The Republicans/conservatives have always had a dark undercurrent and plenty of crazy in their midst and heaps of racism. They started to really rip that mask off when Obama was elected.

      Then Pedonald started up with being King of the Birthers and we were really on our way…

  • I_Jedi@lemmy.todayEnglish
    441·
    3 days ago

    Lots of reasons 2008 would do this.

    • First black president
    • People losing their houses and jobs due to financial crash
    • Proliferation of smartphones and the Internet (remember dial-up?)
    • 1dalm@lemmings.world
      20·
      3 days ago

      I think you should also include the Iraq War. Evangelicals set a lot of their identity in their belief that the War on Terror would be the final Holy War that would bring about the Kingdom of Christ (with them at the top, of course). But instead their holy war turned into an undeniable catastrophe in front of their eyes.

      And also Jesus didn’t come back like he was supposed to.

      • fodor@lemmy.zip
        7·
        3 days ago

        And it’s really hard to overstate the significance of that war. The vast majority of Washington politicians and the vast majority of mainstream media outlets explicitly endorsed it as being just, they were all proven as liars before it even started and certainly after the fact, and very few of them apologized for the massive amounts of deaths that they caused. They never will apologize, they can’t deal with that, their pride won’t let them.

    • CharlesDarwin@lemmy.worldEnglish
      142·
      3 days ago

      I’m thinking so much of it was the first one.

      And when we say “polarization”, I’m sure that’s a bothsiderist way to say: “Republicans/conservatives getting even more crazy”.

      • I_Jedi@lemmy.todayEnglish
        12·
        3 days ago

        The effect of economic turmoil should not be underestimated. “That guy over there took my house” would boost polarization for sure.

        • CharlesDarwin@lemmy.worldEnglish
          2·
          3 days ago

          I’m just saying that I seem to remember the cons claiming that Obama was so “divisive” all through both of his terms. If you’d ask them what that actually meant, they really could offer nothing cogent as to what they meant.

          Meanwhile characters like Newt and Rush had laid the groundwork in the 90s to really create a lot of polarization.

  • TropicalDingdong@lemmy.world
    202·
    3 days ago

    US citizens elected a change candidate who then proceeded to bail out the banks while people were going homeless, and the followed it up by handing over healthcare to insurance companies.

    Obama jaded a generation out of the concept that progress could be made through politics. They became ample fodder for the nativist/ auth right movements which would follow.

    • yonderbarn@lazysoci.al
      24·
      3 days ago

      The man made bank post presidency earning lucrative Netflix and Spotify deals and hanging out on Richard Branson’s yacht.

      Just goes to show you which side he was on when banks went under

  • Novis@lemdro.idEnglish
    31·
    3 days ago

    First black president- United States loses it’s mind Find out covid is killing poor black people more than white people- America loses it’s mind and calls mask mandates fascist Find out social programs benefit black and brown people- America calls them welfare queens and demands investigations and budget cuts. Sounds about racist America to me.