A gunman at a baseball field. A car in Charlottesville. A surge in death threats against D.C. lawmakers. New alt-right rallies planned. More violence expected. The President's tweets and speeches stir the pot, and across the country, contempt, disgust, and anger burn with righteous fervor.
Writer Leon Wieseltier got double his wish. In the aftermath of the election, he wanted half of America to “stay angry.” He claimed this was the only way to uphold principles in Trump’s America. “Maintain [your] disgust,” he insisted, which apparently still sounds like a good idea to many on both sides of the political divide. Increased isolation from those with different political ideas combined with aggressive political rhetoric has created the sense in people, regardless of ideology, that “hostility directed at the opposition is acceptable, even appropriate,” according to political scientists, Iyengar and Westwood. Their research––along with current events––indicate that partisans are fairly uninhibited in engaging in discriminatory behavior and expressing animus toward opposing partisans.
[For more of this story, written by Pamela B. Paresky, go to https://www.psychologytoday.co...y-political-violence]
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