That's a well-written article, but I can't agree. The underlying assumption is that there is no basis to choose between people's claims - that anyone's opinion is as good as anyone else's. But objective reality does exist.

The issue is not polarization - the issue is that some portion of the population has decided to believe exactly what they want to believe, and those beliefs are false to objective truth.

For example, just a few days ago I got contacted by an old friend I hadn't talked to in decades. Almost immediately, he started to tell me that the US is being taken over by Communism - yes, Mr. Biden is apparently a Commie - and all Conservative speech has been suppressed because of this.

Now, explaining to my "friend" that the Democrats aren't in fact Communists just doesn't make an impression. This guy grew up in the Soviet Union in Hungary, he has all the information, and yet every word out of his mouth is just false to the fact.

This isn't "polarization". Hell, I'm not an American and while I certainly detest the Republicans more than the Democrats, I still detest the Democrats.

My "friend" is simply delusional. There isn't going to be some polite discussion where he contemplates the facts I present him and makes a rational decision.

Now in the case of this yobbo I'm responding to, there's the additional part that I'm British (though I live in the Netherlands). I've watched for years as British leaders and British people told a series of whopping great lies in order to take Britain out of the EU. Remember when Boris Johnson lied and said that Brexit would provide £350 million *a week* to the NHS?

I was sick of arguing with delusional Britons even before I ran into this mouth-breather, so my patience with his lies starts at zero.

Again - the issue is not that we're polarized, though that's also true. The issue is that about 30% of the population have lost touch with consensus reality.