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A review by jdintr
Why We're Polarized by Ezra Klein
3.0
Why are we polarized?
I'LL TELL YOU WHY WE'RE POLARIZED, YOU SEE....
Ezra Klein has an explanation, and in the first part of his book, he lays down a history of American political parties since the Civil War, showing how coalitions (southern Conservatives, business, socialists, etc.) formed and led the country up to the present day--a day in which America is, well, polarized. This helps us to see how Republicans went from being the "good guys" of racial history (think Lincoln and Grant) to the "blue lives matter more" crowd that they are now.
In the second part of his book, Klein uses social sciences to show how fundamentally different liberals are from republicans: ideas covered in much more depth by Jonathan Haidt and others. Demographics play a key role in this. As America's white majority faced an end to its supremacy (births of non-whites have exceeded those of whites for most of this century, and then there's immigration), it retreated to two key bastions: the Republican Party and the Evangelical Church (the word "christian" is left out intentionally).
In the final part of his book, Klein looks ahead at ways that America's political system could eventually reflect its demographic sea change.
I really enjoy listening to Klein's podcasts. He loves to dig into ideas and explore new solutions. His book was no disappointment in this regard. Leading up to the 2020 US Election, when America will once again hold a mirror up to itself and reveal its Nature, it's nice to have this book inside my brain to help understand a very confusing time.
I'LL TELL YOU WHY WE'RE POLARIZED, YOU SEE....
Ezra Klein has an explanation, and in the first part of his book, he lays down a history of American political parties since the Civil War, showing how coalitions (southern Conservatives, business, socialists, etc.) formed and led the country up to the present day--a day in which America is, well, polarized. This helps us to see how Republicans went from being the "good guys" of racial history (think Lincoln and Grant) to the "blue lives matter more" crowd that they are now.
In the second part of his book, Klein uses social sciences to show how fundamentally different liberals are from republicans: ideas covered in much more depth by Jonathan Haidt and others. Demographics play a key role in this. As America's white majority faced an end to its supremacy (births of non-whites have exceeded those of whites for most of this century, and then there's immigration), it retreated to two key bastions: the Republican Party and the Evangelical Church (the word "christian" is left out intentionally).
In the final part of his book, Klein looks ahead at ways that America's political system could eventually reflect its demographic sea change.
I really enjoy listening to Klein's podcasts. He loves to dig into ideas and explore new solutions. His book was no disappointment in this regard. Leading up to the 2020 US Election, when America will once again hold a mirror up to itself and reveal its Nature, it's nice to have this book inside my brain to help understand a very confusing time.