I’ve heard it said that the political division among Americans is axiomatic – namely, a predictable corollary to a two-party system. Though the term binary doesn’t capture the imperative of division it nicely explains the constant polarity of politicians. The word axiomatic on the other hand goes beyond self-evident to the point of logically conclusive. As I am sure you know, the common example is 2 + 2 = 4. What however poisons the otherwise indisputable deduction is the contamination of differences of opinion with extreme positions. The Republicans regularly call their Democratic colleagues the “Radical Left“. The Democrats meanwhile routinely insinuate that Republicans are the demons of wealth, white supremacists and mysogynists.

As often as it has been suggested that Trump has effectively ruined the Republican party it is unlikely in my opinion that he will return under the banner of his own design. The Republican party will sustain itself though perhaps with amended projections – and certainly with altered candidates. With customary self-absorption Americans have drawn their own deductions from the political events since Trump’s mercurial rise to power in 2016. Trump has devoted considerable talent to sustaining the narrative of division among Americans. And it appears to have worked though not without the penalty of losing the 2020 presidential election.

American’s sadly have a knee-jerk reaction to what are normally characterized as Democratic ambitions for public education and health. At the outset the complaint is aligned with extremes – socialism then communism, even graduated to suppression of rights if anything approaching equality is suggested. The only thing currently missing is the historic apothegm of Bolshevism. The Democrats for their part tend to limit criticism to blunt discourteousness by labeling Trump supporters uneducated and impoverished.

If one were not familiar with the token disparity between CNN and FOX NEWS it would be a challenge to forge a similarly combative association of politicians. As it is the parties have the perpetual appearance of conflict, aggression and superiority.

Visitors to Los Angeles have remarked that on the edge of coddled urbanity is the stench of poverty. Practically the whole of Hilton Head Island is devoted to gated communities; for all others, it is merely a trip along a public road from one end of the island to another.

“They will kill us like Stalin did. That’s why this is a fight to the death.”