United we fall : ending America's love affair with the political center / Phil Neisser.

Includes bibliographical references (pages [219]-224) and index.

Ch. 1. Disagreement Today -- Ch. 2. A Mixed Disagreement Legacy -- Ch. 3. Argument after World War II -- Ch. 4. United We Stand and Conspiracy Thinking -- Ch. 5. The Strange Case of the Mass Media -- Ch. 6. Democracy as Conversation -- Ch. 7. Multiculturalism with Principle -- Ch. 8. Disagreement Practice -- Ch. 9. Freedom and Disagreement.

"United We Fall argues that today's harmful levels of polarization in American politics can be ratcheted down only by giving up the twin notions that the center is the sweet spot for political efficiency and that all differences deserve equal weight in the democratic balance. The American people need, instead, to embrace a political credo of civic engagement, confrontation with open ears, and spirited debate. The commonplace "United We Stand" must be supplanted by the insight that democracy is strongest where it acknowledges and formalizes real division." "In making the case for principled disagreement, United We Fall reviews the history of good and bad disagreement practices in American politics, analyzes our mass media through a pro-disagreement lens, and draws on studies of conformist group behavior to expose the manipulative dynamics of contemporary dialog initiatives. Neisser assesses best practices for conducting public debate at all civic levels on the most vexed issues in America today: terrorism, multiculturalism, religion in politics, social and family values, race, the media, education, and the environment."--BOOK JACKET.