I lean toward the latter view, though the disease seems to be spreading awfully fast.
Political scientists differ about how widespread the phenomenon is-some seeing it shared broadly across American society, while others believe it confined to activist elites. Mistrust and hostility have been grafted onto disagreement about ideas. The term du jour, “tribalism,” replaced the earlier “polarization” precisely to capture the added ingredient of animosity that has made even conversation across partisan divides difficult. Among the most corrosive developments of recent years-one that predates the election of Donald Trump-has been a breakdown in our ability to debate and reason with others with whom we disagree.
