You know what's funny. If I considered myself anything politically, I'd consider myself a liberal. (Shocked? Didin't think so.) I find also that most conservatives like to argue. When they start though, I tend to just shut down. They'll attack John Kerry, Bill and Hilary Clinton, Michael Moore, and I'll just sit there and listen as opposed to trying to interfere. I was curious as to why that is, because if we don't educate these people, no one will. I sat there, pondering why I said nothing the last time this all came up. Last night, I think I figured it out.
It's hard to argue with a conservative. Not because they're right, or they have ANY point whatsoever, but because to argue the point at hand you have to explain so much. To argue about racial profiling, you first need to get them to understand that not every arab is a terrorist, then that not every arab hates America, then that not every terrorist is an arab, then that racial profiling is akin to how they labeled the jews during the holocaust, then that the holocaust really happened, then that the holocaust was bad, then how nazi germany happened (ironically spawned by the fear caused by a terrorist attack, when the country gave up its rights so that a man named Hitler could do all their thinking for them). It's like explaining the difference between digital cable and sattelite television to Aristotle. Sure, he may be a smart guy, but you've got a lot of catching up to do to even talk about the pros and cons of digital vs. satellite. You need to explain what television is, what electricity is, what a satellite is, the world isn't flat, what digital is, what pixelation is... etc.
The other reason it's hard to talk to a conservative is that they tend to argue with themselves. Not out loud, they might not even notice it. But they will say one thing and then say the opposite, and somehow believe both. For example, Michael Moore is bad because he "made up evidence and didn't check his sources before making a movie to try to change public opinion." But I say to them, "What about Bush making up evidence and not checking his sources before telling us about WMD's in Iraq so he could change public opinion for war?" Their response is that he didn't know any better. He thought they were there, and he did the right thing.
I can't argue with this type of mentality, and I can't imagine that these people ever really think about what it is that they are saying. So the reason I give in, is because essentially it's hopeless. There's nothing I can say to try to change their mind, because honestly, THEY don't even know where they stand. It's an infinate loop, and even if you were to prove them wrong on every single instance possible, they still wouldn't concede because they could just counter with "You're wrong." No proof, no arguement, no logic, just "you're wrong." And they would essentially bring on the stalemate, choosing not to hear anything you just said. It's like arguing with a six year old. There's really no point. The problem is though is that when you're the only liberal, it's like arguing with a six year old in a playground full of six year olds. You sit there and you say, "You know Johnny, you shouldn't hit Timmy because it's not nice, and you wouldn't like it if Timmy hit you, would you?" Johnny would then reply to me with, "You're a poopyhead" and he and his friends are convinced he won the arguement. There's no explaining it to them, you just have to wait for maturity to set in. Sadly it may never happen, and Johnny grows up to be the next Rush Limbaugh.
It's hard to argue with a conservative. Not because they're right, or they have ANY point whatsoever, but because to argue the point at hand you have to explain so much. To argue about racial profiling, you first need to get them to understand that not every arab is a terrorist, then that not every arab hates America, then that not every terrorist is an arab, then that racial profiling is akin to how they labeled the jews during the holocaust, then that the holocaust really happened, then that the holocaust was bad, then how nazi germany happened (ironically spawned by the fear caused by a terrorist attack, when the country gave up its rights so that a man named Hitler could do all their thinking for them). It's like explaining the difference between digital cable and sattelite television to Aristotle. Sure, he may be a smart guy, but you've got a lot of catching up to do to even talk about the pros and cons of digital vs. satellite. You need to explain what television is, what electricity is, what a satellite is, the world isn't flat, what digital is, what pixelation is... etc.
The other reason it's hard to talk to a conservative is that they tend to argue with themselves. Not out loud, they might not even notice it. But they will say one thing and then say the opposite, and somehow believe both. For example, Michael Moore is bad because he "made up evidence and didn't check his sources before making a movie to try to change public opinion." But I say to them, "What about Bush making up evidence and not checking his sources before telling us about WMD's in Iraq so he could change public opinion for war?" Their response is that he didn't know any better. He thought they were there, and he did the right thing.
I can't argue with this type of mentality, and I can't imagine that these people ever really think about what it is that they are saying. So the reason I give in, is because essentially it's hopeless. There's nothing I can say to try to change their mind, because honestly, THEY don't even know where they stand. It's an infinate loop, and even if you were to prove them wrong on every single instance possible, they still wouldn't concede because they could just counter with "You're wrong." No proof, no arguement, no logic, just "you're wrong." And they would essentially bring on the stalemate, choosing not to hear anything you just said. It's like arguing with a six year old. There's really no point. The problem is though is that when you're the only liberal, it's like arguing with a six year old in a playground full of six year olds. You sit there and you say, "You know Johnny, you shouldn't hit Timmy because it's not nice, and you wouldn't like it if Timmy hit you, would you?" Johnny would then reply to me with, "You're a poopyhead" and he and his friends are convinced he won the arguement. There's no explaining it to them, you just have to wait for maturity to set in. Sadly it may never happen, and Johnny grows up to be the next Rush Limbaugh.
