The Problem Today Is Not Tribalism But Its Absence
The dirtiest word in US politics these days is tribalism. For pundits and policymakers, tribalism is blind group loyalty that is tearing our country apart. Mindless tribal affiliations, they say, drive our polarizations and prevent us from finding common ground. The greatest danger of tribalism, we are told, is that it morphs political leanings into social identities, creating political morass, gridlock, and decay.
But these pundits and policymakers have the story backwards. Indeed, we have enormous political challenges because we no longer value or know how to live like tribes:...