Inter Party Marriage?

          As you may recall from my last post, the topic I have decided to take on for my "Junior theme" research paper is political polarization in America and the growing partisan gap. While the topic in name may seem to center around congress and politicans over in Washington, what really stood out to me, and the reason I ultimatly choose the topic, was the fact that political polarization is so prevalent in our culture and some don't even realize it. Okay well maybe most people can attest to hearing political extremists on the news, or enduring a long dinner discussion of two avid political buffs who can't seem to agree on the same issue, or even families that won't allow their children to marry someone of the other political party. Yes, you heard me alright. According to CQ Researcher, a study from YouGov Poll in 2010 stated that about 50% of republicans and 35% of democrats said they would be unhappy if their child marrried someone from the other party. The same poll taken in 1960 found that only 5% of republicans and 4% of democrats would be unhappy with this.

          Like I stated, this fact was one that caused me discontempt. How could our society be so shallow, I thought. But two weeks and piles of books and articles later, I have discovered that there is way more to politics and the polarization of them then just the way some elected officials vote on laws. The polarization runs in a deep culture divide where morals are tested against eachother: social and political principles that people have increasingly become loyal to. It has started to occur to me that maybe the reason parents have increasingly not approved of inter party marrige is because they feel that their childrens' morals are being swayed by the oposing party spouse. Do you think that it is bad for parents to put these kinds of pressures on their child to marry one of the same political party? Or do you think that they are just trying to make sure that their future son/daughter in-law has the same values?