The divide is very real. I am conservative, but a peaceful one. However, I regularly hang out at the Elks Lodge, which is a very conservative organization. In these halls you will constantly hear the most awful things being said about what needs to be done with "the other side." Most of this is just idle chit-chat, but some people on both sides of this petty ongoing argument are willing to do just about anything for what they perceive as victory. And just like you said above, this is fueled intentionally by the media. I would say that social media is even more responsible because I can always identify what sort of place a person gets their information from by how completely biased it is in their statements.

Lately I have made a bit of a rule with my friends at the Lodge that we do not speak about politics when we are supposed to be relaxing with a few beers after work. Thankfully, most of these guys respect my "rule."