<\/a>The Chicago Cubs are in the 2016 World Series. Good for them. They\u2019re a great team. So, why am I so bitter and resentful? Why did I root against them vs. the LA Dodgers? Could it be that I\u2019m a St. Louis Cardinals fan, and that my allegiance\u2014like that of so many sports fans–is a tribal thing? And is my identity as a liberal\/progressive just another form of tribalism?<\/p>\n

Growing up in the 1950s and 60s, I think I had come to expect evolutionary social progress. In the 1970s, I thought we were on the brink of shedding our tribal identities and becoming a more open, accepting, inclusive and big-thinking society.<\/p>\n

Things have not turned out that way.<\/p>\n

In fact, we\u2019ve gone in the opposite direction. Looking at the American political landscape, it\u2019s clear that, rather than thinking beyond our political party identities, we\u2019ve become more entrenched. That goes for individuals as well as politicians. Democrats and Republicans have become warring tribes. Donald Trump behaves more like a tribal warlord than a person aspiring to the presidency\u2014inciting violence and vengeance instead of looking for peace among people with differing identities and opinions. We\u2019re the red tribe against the blue tribe. Congressional representatives who call themselves leaders are more akin to clan elders than to rivals seeking ways to overcome their differences for the good of something bigger than themselves. [I\u2019m talking to you, Mitch McConnell.]<\/p>\n

This situation reminds me of Mel Brooks\u2019 classic comedy routine, \u201cThe 2000-year-old Man.\u201d Brooks plays the title role, with sidekick Carl Reiner as a newspaper reporter interviewing him. Among other questions, Reiner asks, \u201cBack in your caveman days, did you have national anthems?\u201d Brooks answers, \u201cOh yeah.\u201d \u201cWell, can you sing yours for us,\u201d asks Reiner. Here’s an animated version of what happened next:<\/p>\n