It’s becoming increasingly difficult for me to understand why everyone is as calm as they are.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s not like we’re witnessing a newfound sense of utopian unity. Divisions have grown within every political and cultural issue in our society, with your position on any or all issues used to judge your moral value (or lack thereof).

But that’s not what is at the root of my difficulty. No, it’s the fact that our political class continues to escape the fury we have for one another.

Whether it be Hunter Biden or Hillary Clinton, the rule of law is only applied to those who are powerless or pose a threat to the institutional elite. If you tick the right boxes, even the head of the nation's premier law enforcement agency will invent mitigations for criminal behavior so that you can avoid consequences for your actions.

They have celebrated themselves for sending an ever-increasing amount of our money to Ukraine, including $6.2 billion, because of an " accounting error " — oops! — all while they oscillate between borrowing and printing money, fueling the same inflation that’s devaluing the dwindling cash in our pockets as we speak.

They either routinely engage in blatant insider trading, or they’re the luckiest traders in history. Members of Congress beat the market last year by trading hundreds of millions of dollars worth of assets. Dozens of members of Congress have violated the STOCK Act, but not to worry! Congress has self-regulated itself… with the threat of a $200 fine.

And what about the pièce de résistance, COVID-19? They forced you to stay in your home. They forced your business to close down, likely never to return.

Meanwhile, they flaunted their own authoritarian laws, enjoying Michelin-star dinners, vacations, and haircuts. They forced you to wear a ragged and disgusting piece of permeable cloth on your face after telling us they were useless. They forced you to get a vaccine and a never-ending stream of boosters and changed the definition of the vaccine when people pointed out the obvious — that they didn’t work. They refused to let your child go to school, stunting the educational and social growth of an entire generation, and then figuratively spat upon the parents who protested the curriculum that was suddenly visible.

The list goes on and on. What did I miss? People often ask: why is America so divided?

Well, the answer is simple when you realize that the division is not between Republicans and Democrats or black and white or urban and suburban, or any number of arbitrary camps. No, the division is truly caused by our self-siloed political elite by distracting with divisions between everyone else. While we squabble over real and imaginary issues, they stand to the side, consolidate their power, and get rich.

And until we wake up to this reality and punish them for their self-regulated disregard for their elected duty, we deserve everything we get.

Ian Haworth ( @ighaworth ) is the host of Off Limits with Ian Haworth . You can also find him on Substack .