It is heartsickening to see America go down this road.

[Stonepounder]

16. My theory is that it really started in 1964.

That's when LBJ pushed the Civil Rights Act through Congress and Signed it into law. At the time he commented that as a result, "We have lost the South for a generation". Prior to 1964 the Democratic party was the party of segregation and Jim Crow and the South voted solidly for Democrats, earning the sobriquet "The Solid South". LBJ, from Texas, changed that with the Civil Rights Law. The Republicans saw an opening and Nixon developed "The Southern Strategy", veering rapidly to the right and embracing Jim Crow and segregation.

Couple that with the rise of Conservative talk radio and the likes of Limburger, Beck, Hannity along with FAUX News and you had a perfect petri dish for the likes of tRump. Someone who, along with insulting just about everyone on the planet, didn't know what a Gold Star family was, probably didn't know what the Purple Heart was awarded for, has no idea of the destructive power of nuclear weapons, and honestly believes that he is the greatest mortal of all time. Remember, this is a guy who claimed that when he was about 15 he was (actual quote) "The best baseball player in New York." Bear in mind that was the year the Yankees won the World Series with a line-up that included Whitey Ford, Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, and Yogi Berra.