And so it goes.....

Paul & Christina & Jenni all have very interesting observations. And yes Paul, I agree with you that "the media" do certainly contribute to our distance from one another.

It's part of the cultural hegemony of one group dominating another. The dominant part of the U.S. culture tends to also be dominant in media ownership. As a result, the perspective of the ruling class tends to dominate what we see and hear.

And when the point of view of a subculture does rise above the din to get people's attention, often the dominant class in the culture then co-opts and sanitizes the message of the subculture, making it less threatening but using the traits that made it distinctive, generally for the purpose of making money.

Think: NWA = MC Hammer.