That's the point; he's not. His approval rating is 38% which is historically low, but that still means that tens of millions of Americans like what he's doing. If you don't know any of them, that says more about you and your bubble than him. (That applies to me as well; of all the people I know I'd be surprised if more than 5% approved of Trump).

I suspect that a lot of the reason there seems to be indication of increased tribalism is because of him

I suspect it's largely the reverse. "Progressives" were rioting over Halloween costumes and the alt-right was making racist memes well before Trump came on the stage, and that's possibly because Facebook and other social media made it easier for them to organize.

I am well aware of people who approve of him, I also wasn't surprised when he won I expected it exactly because I don't live in a bubble.

I have plenty of good friends who voted Trump and Hillary and I understand why people would vote for either of them. I also understand why Trump still have a relatively large approval rating and disregarding his absurd and clumsy style I am not as negative towards his presidency.

I'm also honestly curious though. Care to elaborate why you're not as negative towards him? And if not in public, I'd really love to continue this by email (mine's in my profile).

I met a Trump voter from India who had spent more than 10 years and a lot of money to get his green card.

He complained about the Dreamers and how that basically was cheating what he had to do the official way.

These are the kind of subjects people care about when voting for someone like Trump.

With regards to Trump and why I am not as negative towards him. Because I don't know (besides his toe-cringing communication style) what it is I should be negative about that isn't mostly republican politics.

By and large, his politics haven't really done much in any fundamental way. I am aware that there are specifics that can be put forward as "bad" but to me politics is a much larger game than just isolated events.

Fact is that we don't know what the consequence will be. The results of any presidents politics are often seen long after they left office.

So I am basically unsentimental with regards to Trump. Personally, I am what you would call a fiscally conservative but value based liberal.

I benefit from globalization because of what I do, but I am aware of the problems it creates for many in the working class (which I grew up in too) and I think Trump's appeal to them was at least an attempt at changing things in some fundamental ways.

What I hold even higher though is the US democratic process which I consider extremely impressive in it's ability to contain someone like Trump.

In other words like most other presidents before him, Trump is being guided by the checks and balances of the US democratic system.

I don't see any cause for real concern so far.

could you elaborate on capital-D Dreamers? I'm unfamiliar with the term.

> These are the kind of subjects people care about when voting for someone like Trump. With regards to Trump and why I am not as negative towards him. Because I don't know (besides his toe-cringing communication style) what it is I should be negative about that isn't mostly republican politics.

Do you truly believe that his only failing is his communication style? I find myself troubled by the lack of decorum (weird, impulsive tweets, comments that make no sense whatsoever, etc.), locker-room comments like:

“Whoa!” Trump responds. “Whoa! I’ve gotta use some Tic Tacs, just in case I start kissing her. You know I’m automatically attracted to beautiful. I just start kissing them. It’s like a magnet. Just kiss. I don’t even wait.”

“Whatever you want,” Bush replies.

“Grab them by the pussy,” Trump replies. “You can do anything.”

While I don't know how I feel about the lack of 'decorum' I gotta admit that even my least politically correct locker-room talk hasn't been close to this kind of stuff.

I can understand wanting to vote against the status quo, but Trump just strikes me as way, way into crazy territory. How do you feel about these kinds of statements he makes? And again, I really am honestly inquisitive, and I'd be happy to move this to email.

> So I am basically unsentimental with regards to Trump. Personally, I am what you would call a fiscally conservative but value based liberal. > I benefit from globalization because of what I do, but I am aware of the problems it creates for many in the working class (which I grew up in too) and I think Trump's appeal to them was at least an attempt at changing things in some fundamental ways. What I hold even higher though is the US democratic process which I consider extremely impressive in it's ability to contain someone like Trump.

I'd describe my history and current situation as very similar. I suppose it's part of the reason why I'm so curious about all this, because I can see a parallel universe version of me voting for Trump. Sure, from my current universe this parallel universe version of me is alien, perhaps even repulsive, but it's somehow still me.

I find that fascinating, having had that experience once before (conservative evangelical until my early twenties. That version of me was actually me, not some 'brainwashed' version I can distance my current self from. I really was a young-earth creationist once).

> In other words like most other presidents before him, Trump is being guided by the checks and balances of the US democratic system. > I don't see any cause for real concern so far.

I wish I could be more certain about this, but based on my new consumption there do seem to be a number of very real, very negative effects. However, I'm not certain enough about that to say this with full conviction. If anyone can be more specific about the actual consequences of Trump's presidency, I'd love to hear it. So far I'm inclined to believe that it's worse than many of us think, but I also feel that a lot of the media I've been consuming has been unreasonably negative about Trump (and that strikes me as difficult to pull off).

I am not a celebrity either but I have hung out with enough of them to see that "when you are a celebrity you can do anything" is pretty much true. Especially if you look good.

It's really a discussion of the privilege of being a celebrity more than anything from my point of view and I have no problem separating them which is probably why I don't consider it relevant with regards to Trump specifically. It's really a crazy world you live in when you are a celebrity.

I find it telling that you can't actually point to anything that Trump has done which is demonstratively bad in the way it's being portrayed by most media. All anyone really has is the indignation over his tweets and a few areas which I don't believe there is any consensus around on either side of the aisle.

You haven't spent any time thinking about this, I take it.

This is a really gross thing to say. Go read Louis C.K.'s statement as just one example out of many recent ones. There are a lot of rich playboys out there, but just because "they let you do it" doesn't mean you're not forcing yourself on them and you're not a disgusting fucking creep.

You are welcome to feel it's a gross thing to say I am not expecting you to understand what I am talking about. I was simply answering someone who asked for my opinion.

[1]: http://www.cnn.com/2017/09/04/politics/daca-dreamers-immigra...

If it creates a filter bubble how can it then increase tribalism and polarization?

These are problems you face when you interface only with people who share very congruent values and obtain their news from the same source. If Facebook uses Skinner Box techniques to keep you on the site as long as possible, it’s not interested in outcomes that are good for you but might make you leave, like challenging your beliefs and values.

It's an oversimplification of how the algorithm actually works as there are plenty of non-political interestest involved too.

http://education.biu.ac.il/files/education/shared/science-20...

Conclusion: People are extremely aligned to viewpoints, reinforced by their friends, however they are less aligned than if they STRICTLY consumed media from their own viewpoint because they have some cross-cutting issues.

Key relative measure there and worth reading into more depth.