1 February

There are usually foundation-level social teams in the status games that define human society, at least in modern times (with the decline of Kings and Queens, at least temporarily). Today that’s the politics of Left and Right, most identify with one of those as the foundation ‘team’ that structures their wider life. They may have many other social teams, like their favorite music, cars, clothes, etc. But this is their master team. A generation or two ago that role was played by Protestantism and Catholicism. And there was a period in the transition where it was a sort of hybrid, Catholics and Protestants aligned more with one side of politics than another. None of it represents anything much real, it’s pure team sports. The deeper assumption is that you must have a ‘side’ to be a member of society. We mostly don’t escape that bubble, until war or plague or economic collapse force us to (if we survive).