Ripped Apart

How Democrat Can Fight Polarization to Win

Table of Contents

Intro: How Delusions Spark Polarization

Part 1.  What Polarizes Us?

1. The Perils of Polarization … 12
2. Clear and Present Danger … 17
3. How Polarization Develops … 23
4. How to Depolarize a Cyclops … 28
5. Three Political Traps … 33
6. The Crime Bill Myth … 38
7. The Purity Trap … 48

Part 2.  Charisma Traps

8. Smart People Get Sucked In … 55
9. Good People Get Sucked In … 58
10. Jonestown: Evil Charisma … 63
11. Alex Jones: More Evil Charisma … 69
12. The Charismatic Progressive … 74
13. Trump: Charismatic Sociopath … 82

Part 3.  Populism Traps

14. What is Populism and Why Should We Care? … 91
15. Trump: A Fake Jacksonian Populist … 98
16. ‘Our Revolution’ Meets the Jacksonians … 105
17. Economics vs. the Culture War … 111
18. Sanders’ Populist Strategy … 117
19. Good Populism: The Kingfish … 123
20. Utopian Populism … 130
21. Don’t Be the Enemy They Need … 136

Part 4.  Mythology Traps

22. Socialism, Liberalism and All That … 143
23. Sanders’ Socialism Myths … 150
24. The Myth of the Utopian Savior … 158
25. The Establishment Myth … 165
26. The Myth of the Bully Pulpit … 170
27. The Myth of the Overton Window … 178

Part 5.  Identity Politics

28. When the Klan Went Low, SNCC Went High … 187
29. What Is Identity Politics? … 199
30. Identity Politics—The Dark Side … 205
31. Cultural Appropriation … 212
32. The Microaggression Hoax … 218
33. Roots of the New Identity Politics … 224
34. Postmodernism: The Anti-Truth … 232
35. The Ultimate Con Game … 238

Part 6.  Wrap-up and Overview

36. Radical-Left Mythology … 253
37. The Tragic Paradox of Radicalism … 264
38. How Progressive Change Happens … 275
39. Putting the Pieces Together … 291

Bibliography

Major Topics Index