Comments
THE VIEW FROM HERE - We are a nation of over 346 Million people, yet everyone acts as if it is someone else’s fault. Yes, of course, some people are far more to blame for our national polarization than others. We can show that Nancy Pelosi has been the prime architect of wokeism, but this was obvious for two decades. As far back of November 2010, one could see that Pelosi’s Identity Politics fueled the irrational Tea Baggers and their win in the 2010 Congressional races. I and other attorneys should have realized that the judicial corruption in the federal trial and appellate courts were replacing the rule of law. After the 1986 California Supreme Judicial Retention elections, the California judiciary nose dived into ever worsening corruption. Attorneys maneuvered through the corruption and managed to make a living, but there was no coordinated reform effort.
The Reality Is Only a Few People Run the Country
When the politicos share a common ethos, the two-party system can function.
Traditionally, America had traditionally been a centrist country where some Dems would be more conservative than the GOP, and the GOP would have liberal members. Thus, Washington recognized the need for respect and mutual cooperation. Vicious extremists like Sen. Joe McCarthy did not last. Nixon was forced to resign because his own party recognized he certainly violated accepted norms. Today, a President may be so extreme that the Supreme Court okays criminal behavior. After WW II, the country operated on a consensus basis, but in the 2000's Wokeism arose, which then spawned its opposition, MAGA.
Then Came Polarization
Since virtually no one had lived with a polarized America, very few could realize where we were headed. Thus, we did nothing. Those who had a need for excitement were energized. They were fueled by righteous grievances and theories of victimization. When Alt Right had their August 17, 2017, Tiki Torch Alt Right march in Charlottesville, no one outside the Alt Right knew why they were chanting, “Jews shall not replace us.” Most people looked at the marchers and said, “Why would Jews want to take your places – you’re losers.”
Almost no one knew that Pelosi’s Identity Politics campaign was helping spread the Alt Right conspiracy theory that Blacks were going to replace the White and take the property, jobs, and political position as soon as the minorities were a majority of the voters. Being anti-Semitic, the Alt Right fell back on their traditional explanation for everything which upset them – The Jews did it. Claiming that Blacks were not smarter enough to orchestrate the take-over, the Jews had to be engineering the Great Replacement Theory.
Polarization Has Always Threatened Western Civilization
The danger of polarization, aka dichotomization, was set forth in CityWatch in 2011. See Dichotomization For thousands of years Western Civilization has fallen for the absurdly simplistic idea that life is divided between the Good and Evil, the Holy and the Saved, Aryans v Jews. Most recently under Wokeism, the dichotomy became the Oppressor Jews vs all minorities.
Polarization American style, Identity Politics, Wokeism, DEI programs, have been a disaster the Dem Party, but more importantly for the nation. Rather than admit how much Americans love individual inalienable rights, the Dems have made being anti-Jewish a cornerstone of their 2026 election campaign. Which Dem other than the (non-Jewish) Sen. John Fetterman and Gov Josh Shapiro has condemned Zohran Mamdani’s support for Hamas. The mainstream media, ABC, CBS, NBC, has been gone hog wild on anti-Israel Blood Libels about Gaza, Iran, and The Druze. Syria is engaged in an actual genocide against the Druze and only Israel has defended the Druze. Yet, the media blames Israel for being the war monger. S for Gaza, the media incessantly reports about how many Gazans have been killed and wounded when they come to the Israel’s food distribution, but the media fails to report that Hamas is doing the killing. Instead, the media reports that the IDF fired shots, implying the IDF killed the Gazans while omitting that the IDF was firing over the heads of the Gazans because those fleeing Hamas were turning into a stampede which would kill untold Gazans. When the IDF succeeds in shooting Hamas members, the media pretends that innocent civilians were targeted by Israel. When Gazans cheer the IDF for bringing the relief, the media reports that the Gazans booing IDF. The media reports whatever Hamas says, it seldom, if ever, prints a correction when their stories are proved dead wrong. One extra reason the media has recently been so adamant in its totally false stories about Gaza is that Zohran Mamdani refuses to condemn Hamas. Thus, Woke Dems are desperate make Hamas appear to be the victims rather than the reality that Hamas is responsible for all the Gazan carnage. If Hamas are freedom fighters, then Mamdani should support Hamas. The reality is when Hamas surrenders, all the shooting will stop. If Israel should stop and leave Gaza, the Islamists’ extermination of the Jews will increase.
Not to be outdone in woke insanity, the MAGA have decided that Barack Obama is guilty of treason. No MAGA questions why this nefarious evil was not discovered in the prior nine years. Forget Jeffrey Epstein; “Obama’s treason” is the meme de jour; that’s more exciting that molesting teenage girls. BTW, Epstein did not molest children who are 0 to 12. He molested many teens (13-19). The media hypes everything because sensationalism rakes in more $ than honesty.
Bottom Line: No Decent Person Should Registered as GOP or Dem
There is no acceptable reason for a voter to remain registered in either party --- with one exception. If you will become very active in GOP or Dem politics in order to fight tooth and nail for a Centrist country which shuns these increasingly unhinged extremes, that would be a reason to remain registered. Remember, however, what happened to Germans who tried to temper the Nazis from the inside.
With 186.5 million registered voters, far too many of us are lending our ostensible support to extremists. By not de-registering, we act like spectators in ancient Rome, cheering for our favorite gladiator to slice off his rival’s head.
(Richard Lee Abrams is a Los Angeles-based attorney, author, and political commentator. A long-time contributor to CityWatchLA, he is known for his incisive critiques of City Hall and judicial corruption, as well as his analysis of political and constitutional issues. Abrams blends legal insight with historical and philosophical depth to challenge conventional narratives. A passionate defender of civic integrity and transparency, he aims to expose misuse of power and advocate for systemic reform in local government. You may email him at [email protected] )
