The scary thing is that kind of self-censure is what leads some people to feel like they are being prosecuted, giving them their own victim complex and making them less sympathetic towards others. It's not the idiots ranting on Facebook I'm worried about, it's the people who stay quiet but agree/vote with them. I would bet a ton of people have become more jaded this year, and some will straight up flip to the other side.

If you think it's self-censure you haven't been paying attention. Being shouted down and shamed for speaking your mind every time you speak like you're the devil incarnate for not towing the popular line. There is nothing "self" about it. The people that have traded discourse and debate for each chambers and blind outrage caused this mess, and they will reap what they sew.