some historical information please...

[seaj11]

I'm curious: I know that hostility between Democrats and Republicans has been growing since the late 1980s-early 1990s, but what are the patterns of hostility between the two parties (whatever two may prevail at the time) throughout America's history? Has it ever gotten this bad before? Thanks.

[thoughtanarchist]

1. well, we had this civil war once see...

yeah, that was fresh...

sorry... i'll just shut up now.

[H2O Man]

5. That wasn't between

two political parties per say.

No, things have never been quite like this before. Until the Civil War, there were numerous other parties. Because of the sheer number of them, they often relied upon a series of alliances with other parties. The republican party actually started as an alliance.

At the significant points in the national history after the Civil War, there were serious conflicts such as the opposition to the US getting involved in WW1 or the extremely wealthy hating FDR. But there were also things that created a sense of national unity.

Even in the 1960s the divisions were largely based on age and race. The opposition to the war, which started out slowly, would eventually include people of both parties.

As bad as Reagan was -- and he was an evil man -- he attempted to work with the opposition party. This Bush has taken the most paranoid and hostile strain of the Nixon administration, and has done more to divide America than any force in our history since the Civil war.

[manic expression]

2. Well,

I'm no professor, but I'm pretty sure that before the Civil War, a Congressman was brutally beaten with a cane and suffered brain damage. Guns and knives were carried by many a Congressman during that period.
Even the elections before and during the Great Depression were not very heated or passionate.
I hope someone else can answer your question adequately.

[toddaa]

3. Pistols at dawn

Remember Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton?

[manic expression]

4. Remember when Zell

challenged someone to a duel (too bad he didn't mean it, oh well)?

[thoughtanarchist]

9. Zell challanged Tweety to a duel...

I think he did mean it...Gawd that was funny.

[Ardee]

6. Republican vs. Federalist

Burr the Republican, his star rising meets Hamilton, the Federalist whose star is falling rapidly in New Jersey...Hamilton is mortally wounded and dies the next day......

The halls of congress were once famous for fistfights, much cursing and challenges to duels...things havent changed all that much.....

[SheilaT]

7. It's much worse now than it's been

since the Civil War. Although back then it wasn't so much a political party difference as a sectarian difference.

Read the book "Generations" by Strauss and Howe to get a good understanding of the cycles of American history. Given what they say, it looks as if we're at the beginning of a twenty year long upheaval of our society, way of life, you name it.

Things are going to get much worse before they begin to get better.

[Warpy]

8. Not this bad in my lifetime, and I imagine it hasn't been this bad

since Reconstruction, although the period of the major changes during FDR's first two terms probably came very close. Rich people controlled the party by then, and they do NOT like being told they have to cough it up for the good of their country.

Rhetoric has been this bad before, of course. However, this is the first time the minority party has been locked out of committee meetings. I thing this is unprecedented. Even when the Civil Rights legislation was being rammed through Congress, nobody was forbidden to have his say on the matter.

I lay the blame for this sick state of affairs squarely on the shoulders of the pricks the GOP has in Congress, especially Delay and Frist. With those two thugs in charge, there is no way things will change.