re: #156 Fozzie Bear

The NYC mosque isn’t a political issue. It’s not that the parties are polarized, it’s that things that should never even have been discussed in the context of politics are made into “issues” by ideologues.

Examples: AGW, the Mosque in Manhattan, people’s private sexual practices, private contractual agreements (i.e. marriage), the teaching of evolution in schools, and many more topics.

None of these things need be discussed by politicians, because they shouldn’t be considered “issues”; They are made to be issues by people who have no actual policy ideas of their own.

The polarization is the problem, because it makes resolution of the issues virtually impossible. It also leads to increasingly extreme positions being taken, as everything becomes an all-or-nothing proposition and compromise is not even attempted. Gridlock and deadlock result, making fertile ground for political extremists.
Very very scary.