Culture War

I do believe that a sort of culture clash exists, but I think that the name "culture war" connotes a meaning that isn't supported by what's been going on in society. I think the formation of a so-called culture war has been the result of extreme partisan politics playing a role in the federalism debate (with the help of spotlight from the national media).
Most people at what James Hunter calls "the polar extremes of society" aren't actively fighting with each other. Instead, these people are mostly surrounded by people who hold the same views. Little pockets of different, and possibly extreme, cultures exist throughout the United States. David Brooks, in his article "One Nation, Slightly Indivisible," highlights that differences are numerous between places like Montgomery and Franklin County; the Red and Blue Americas differ hugely in ethnicity, wealth, education, and many other spheres of life. But just because their respective cultures clash doesn't mean that they are engaged in a culture war. Often, people living in one of the two aforementioned counties can't even imagine life in the other county - it's a foreign culture to them. The two counties have virtually no effect on each other, and they can't relate to each other. It simply doesn't make sense for them to care strongly about what each other thinks or does.
So, since many people in fundamentally different cultures don't really seem interested in fighting a "culture war" with each other, why does the idea of a culture war take the national spotlight? The answer lies in the politics of federalism, or the federal government's imposition of policy on the entire nation. Franklin and Montgomery Counties will only clash when pitted against each other for dominance in the national society. I think it's fair to say that each would prefer to live in their own microcosms and create laws and social standards for themselves. But when policy for social issues are presented on a national scale, problems arise because each wants to uninhibitedly carry on its own way of life. Ultimately, one culture will have to be the loser of the national political war.

 http://campaignstops.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/07/the-persistence-of-the-culture-war/
 http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/06/opinion/06douthat.html?_r=0
 http://douthat.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/12/09/class-and-the-culture-war-ii/