{"id":1572,"date":"2026-07-30T12:44:01","date_gmt":"2026-07-30T16:44:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/potlatchga.com\/?p=1572"},"modified":"2026-07-30T12:50:11","modified_gmt":"2026-07-30T16:50:11","slug":"an-unbridgeable-gap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/potlatchga.com\/?p=1572","title":{"rendered":"An Unbridgeable Gap"},"content":{"rendered":"

I\u2019ve been writing this commentary since 2008, most seriously since 2019. Time enough to help me make sense of the political climate. The one thing that stands out is that an unbridgeable gap exists between the ideological left and right, Democrat and Republican and others who share American politics.<\/p>\n

Recently, several comments by acquaintances and friends struck me as examples of why we can\u2019t find common ground. We frequently see totally different facts or meanings when looking at the same thing. It suggests that one party is looking through the eyes of a dog, viewing things in shades of blue and yellow and failing to distinguish the same outlines or forms as clearly. The tragedy, of course, is that this failure prevents us from ever reaching a common ground or appreciating one another\u2019s perception. It\u2019s easier to demonize or belittle our opponents.<\/p>\n

One friend, a serious Libertarian sent me an article by Erick Erickson entitled \u201cSee, I Told You So: The Numbers Finally Caught up to the Covetous Left.\u201d * He enjoys poking me and believes I\u2019m a left-leaning academic, bereft of real world experience given to compromise, a four-letter word within his circles. The Erickson piece shares political data from Nate Silver** about Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) membership. It makes the point that \u201cAmerican\u201d socialism is not about the poor and downtrodden but is driven by elites with postgraduate degrees who in their unfulfilled ambitions have taken up the cudgel of socialism to profess \u201cvictimhood.\u201d Frankly, I agree with much of what Erickson says, but I reject some of his conclusions and his rhetoric in making his case.<\/p>\n

Which makes me wonder, which of us is seeing the \u201cfacts\u201d through the eyes of a dog?<\/p>\n

*Erick-Woods Erickson at
\nerickerickson.com<\/a><\/p>\n

**Nate Silver is a respected American statistician and political analyst who gained fame for the accuracy of his forecasting models. He correctly predicted the outcome of 49 of 50 states in the 2008 presidential election.<\/p>\n

P.S. See \u201cMy View\u201d posting July 21, 2026, 5th paragraph. (potlatchga.com<\/a>).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I\u2019ve been writing this commentary since 2008, most seriously since 2019. Time enough to help me make sense of the political climate. The one thing that stands out is that an unbridgeable gap exists between the ideological left and right, Democrat and Republican and others who share American politics. 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