Faction & Party

The alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge, natural to party dissension, which in different ages and countries has perpetrated the most horrid enormities, is itself a frightful despotism. But this leads at length to a more formal and permanent despotism. The disorders and miseries which result gradually incline the minds of men to seek security and repose in the absolute power of an individual; and sooner or later the chief of some prevailing faction, more able or more fortunate than his competitors, turns this disposition to the purposes of his own elevation, on the ruins of public liberty. - George Washington, Farewell Address

I didn't watch the Superbowl, but I did see the Budweiser ad recounting the journey of Adolpus Busch to America. Very kitsch. Fabulous Americana. Politically divisive? Underdog Lyft ran a successful marketing campaign touting their $1 million donation to the ACLU while decrying Uber's CEO's role in giving economic advice to the president. These are two sides of the same coin, #BoycottBudweiser and #BoycottUber. And they are a sign that our society has become radically factionalized.

2016 was the first election since the direct election of senators began a century ago in which every state cast a majority of votes for the same party for their senators as they did for the party of the president. For years we have been watching the "great sort" in this country whereby people move to areas with people of similar political persuasions. Is the great sort finally over? Is this the logical end? California seceding is a real possibility with Republicans in control of all three branches of the federal government.

Listening to NPR and Sean Hannity on the radio one gets two totally different pictures of the world. Neither appears close to the truth anymore. Half the country voted for Trump and a recent poll shows more people approving of the job Trump is doing than not. A deeper dive, however, shows that this is 89% approval among Republicans vs. 81% disapproval by Democrats. Divided worldviews indeed! The perspective I hear on NPR, however, is all protests and horror at every executive order. Hannity, on the other hand, lauds every one almost without question and derides other Republicans for not going along quickly enough with Trump's great plans. I use these two examples because I often flip back and forth between them while waiting to pick up the kids.

I am wary of being a political tool for someone else. During the 2004 election, when PACs were new, I got involved with an atheist PAC because I saw them bringing to light the opinions of nonbelievers like myself into the political discussion. It was great to see atheism, which at the time a majority of Americans saw as more dangerous than Islam, being mentioned in political discussions. But it was a front. It was there to mobilize atheists like myself. Well, I got mobilized. Then the PAC declared for John Kerry and spent the rest of its existence solely focused on getting him elected. It was political bait and switch to get a section of the populace mobilized behind a candidate. And I see more of that today. The Women's March that garnered so much support appeared to be organized more about the woman who lost and her party than the man who won. With Democrat politicians like John Lewis eventually headlining the event, my suspicions were only confirmed that it was more political rally than protest march. Nevertheless, I've mostly held my tongue about it because I think many participants were duped like I once was. This week we saw the ugly head of faction show itself again with "Nevertheless, she persisted". Never mind that Sessions has a poor record and still managed to become attorney general, let's start Elizabeth Warren's 2020 presidential campaign because maybe SHE can be the SHE who is the first SHE to win unlike the last HER that apparently not enough people were with. But it really doesn't matter that Warren is woman as much as that she's a Democrat. Al Franken can harangue Betsy DeVos all day and it's okay. On the other side Trump's over the top self promotion has camouflaged some of the more insidious anti-mobilization efforts his side carried out during the election, for example, by targeting black voters on Facebook with ads highlighting all the nasty things Clinton said about them over the years so they'd stay home on election day. I can only imagine the millions of micromanipulations that will be put in place by the Trump administration now that they hold the reins of government.

So, America, next time you're riding in an Uber drinking a Budweiser and minding your own business when someone accosts you for not toeing the line in some political boycott, tell them to go fuck themselves, this is a free country, and you'll do whatever you damn well please.