Partisan rancor seems to have been getting steadily worse over the last several years.  In this presidential campaign, things have gotten particularly ugly in terms of heated rhetoric at campaign rallies, for example with shouts of "terrorist" and "kill him" in response to mentions of Barack Obama at McCain-Palin rallies.  Last week, at a rally in Pennsylvania, a man proudly displayed a Curious George monkey doll with an Obama sticker on its head, introducing it as "little Hussein" who was there to hear from "real Americans."  

Here's the thing: racism sucks. Period. 

On the flip side, the hostility from the left is frequently manifested in parodies of Sarah Palin, mocking not just her political experience but her core values and beliefs in rather exaggerated and unflattering terms.  

No matter who wins, what happens next? How are we supposed to move forward as a country if one half hates the other half?

This concept is explored in a documentary you watch online called Split: A Divided America.  Perhaps a way forward is spelled out in Peggy Noonan's new book, Patriotic Grace: What It Is and Why We Need It Now.

I sure hope someone has an answer, 'cause I can't take much more of this.