Where perceived as absolute, rights take poorly to conflict. When recognizing our neighbor’s rights necessarily extinguishes our own, a survival instinct kicks in. Our opponent in the rights conflict becomes not simply a fellow citizen who disagrees with us, but an enemy out to destroy us. Law becomes reducible to winners and losers, to which side you are on, which tribe you affiliate with. With stakes this high, polarization should not just be expected but it is indeed the only sensible response. If only one side can win, it might as well be mine. Conflict over rights can encourage us to take aim at our political opponents instead of speaking to them. And we shoot to kill.