Conservative vs. liberal. Right vs. left. Red state vs. Blue state.

To look at our political behavior in this country, it’s easy to think this overly simplistic assignment of sides in the battle for voters’ hearts makes American society appear divided beyond repair, and makes the election process seem like ultimate fighting minus the tattoos.

The division appears so deep, you have to wonder: How can any one of the current presidential candidates bring this nation together?

Well, maybe if he/she got everyone playing “Mario.”

Game Guy says this because, as the race for the White House grows hotter and more divisive, he is reminded of a survey reported late last year by super social-analyst Zogby International and the Norman Lear Center at the University of Southern California that examined whether Americans’ entertainment preferences said something about their politics.

The survey involved nearly 4,000 respondents, and they were asked questions about the news, TV shows and movies they watched, the radio shows and music they preferred, and the games they played. Zogby guessed beforehand that people’s entertainment preferences would somehow reflect their political preferences as well.

Not a lot of surprises surfaced. Overall, Republicans/conservatives/Reds weren’t likely to enjoy programming that differed from their personal views; Democrats/liberals/Blues preferred news and information-oriented shows to programs developed just for entertainment. And both sides were skeptical of each other’s assessment of entertainment in general.

The division cut all the way down to video games. Reds in general preferred TV to video games; Blues, on the other hand, were open to trying all kinds of video games, regardless of genre.

On one point, though, Reds and Blues had a common interest. Among the video game players on both sides, they all liked “Mario.”

It doesn’t matter which “Mario,” either, going all the way back to his debut in “Donkey Kong” almost 27 years ago. Reds and Blues are, how shall we say, “Purple” when it comes to the little jumping man in overalls.

Zogby/Norman Lear didn’t explain the mutual appeal — survey-takers just ask questions, they don’t ask how people feel about their answers. If even half the surveys Game Guy has read could have asked “Why?” as a follow-up, we might have already closed numerous political and social divisions in this country.

Nevertheless, the survey’s discovery of mutual “Mario” love is a sign that points us toward accord and perhaps sets us in the direction Purple future, instead of a divisive Red-vs.-Blue one.

Now, Game Guy knows what you’re thinking: He’s not playing with a full memory chip. His hard drive is suffering from a disk error. His mind’s Internet connection has timed out.

Like he’s never heard that one before.

But as the presidential campaign careens toward November, and the candidates’ rhetoric balloons beyond sense, we’ll all cry out for a real “uniter, not a divider” in our midst.

And right now, that appears to be “Mario.”