A new poll finds that most Americans share many core values on what it means to be an American despite the country’s deep political polarization.

Despite the country’s deep political polarization, most Americans share many core beliefs about what it means to be an American, according to a new poll.

The poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that about 9 in 10 U.S. adults say the right to vote, the right to equal protection under the law and the right to privacy are extremely important or very important to the United States’ identity as a nation. The survey also found that 84% feel the same way about the freedom of religion.

  • givesomefucks@lemmy.worldEnglish
    148·
    3 months ago

    A more pessimistic assessment of the country was reflected in another finding — that only about 3 in 10 Americans believe the nation’s democracy is functioning well. About half say the U.S. is a poorly functioning democracy, while 14% say the U.S. is not a democracy.

    The tension between the broad consensus on the country’s fundamental values and discontent with how well its form of government is working is not a surprise, experts say.

    “Part of it is really our leaders are not reflecting the electorate, and they behave in a way that’s much more polarized than what the electorate is,” said Lilliana Mason, a political scientist at Johns Hopkins University.

    30% of Americans think our system is working…

    Because we’re stuck with picking between a fascist dictator and an elderly conservative that only stops funding a genocide to kick it’s victims and deny them aid.

    There’s no option for voters with functional empathy.

    And that depresses turnout, and that’s the only way the fascist can win.

    The easy solution, is for Dems to just run a decent human as candidate, but they refuse.

    • penquin@lemm.ee
      1·
      3 months ago

      Republicans are straight up shit. Democrats are shit, too, and are using that to tell us they’re not as shit as Republicans, and that if we don’t vote for them, we get shit. But at the end of the day, we are getting shit either way.

      • treefrog@lemm.ee
        1·
        3 months ago

        If both sides are shit Republicans are the kind that runs down your leg in the middle of Christmas dinner while Democrats are the kind that has the decency to wait until you’re in the toilet.

        In other words, I feel your sentiment but still, fuck this both sides are the same bullshit.

    • hypnoton@discuss.online
      1·
      3 months ago

      The Dems are just in favor of a slightly less brutal oligarchy. The Dems by and large still take a lot of money and other favors from the billionaires and know which side their bread is buttered on.

      The Dems today are not a party for the poor, the workers, the bottom 50%, or anything like that. Thus the current Dems on their own are not up to the task of any serious economic restructuring. And we can’t solve any major problem without dealing with our insane wealth inequality.

      • givesomefucks@lemmy.worldEnglish
        31·
        3 months ago

        Think of it from the oligarchs perspective…

        In a two party system the only thing that works better than buying one party is buying both.

        Then creating a large push to convince people if they don’t vote for the lesser evil, their voting for the most evil.

        An illusion of choice where no matter what happens in an election, you always win.