Posted on 06/14/2009 10:54:24 AM PDT by yetidog
I am generally reluctant to argue politics with friends or acquaintances in social settings, but was pushed to it last night at my daughter’s house…and probably lost the friendship of more than one or two people who observed the whole thing and were disturbed by the intensity and mean-spirited content of the comments I directed to my liberal adversary
“Most arguments with liberals eventually reach this point. You are giving them facts and they are telling you that they “feel” that you are wrong.:
My favorite retort?
“Children feel. Adults think. Please grow up.”
"Sure the Republicans are the party of big money, but the Democrats are the party of really big money." - Noam Chomsky
At least your other kids are conservative! lol
Think twice before you use that LBJ analogy. George W. Bush (w/ 6 years of Republic control in Congress) is the 2nd biggest domestic spender (adjusted for inflation) in all of American history. Number 1? LBJ with his Great Society programs. No wonder the Republicans lost control in 2006. Fiscal conservatives stayed home. Though I suppose W has been or shortly will be bumped to the #3 position by the big O.
I bet she is not in denial....just trying to justify why she is sending her child to private school;o)
not bad
Start by asking questions of fact. Liberals have one thing in common they are just ill informed.
After they reveal their ignorance then make fun of them.
No, this doesn’t change their minds, but at least it shuts them up.
bttt
Democrats are racist in every policy they espouse, and that everything a Democrat advocates is based on theft.
Correct; however, liberal BDS rearely has anything to do with Bush’s fiscal programs, rather centers on Iraq and “lying about “WMD. It is difficult for liberals to argue fiscal responsibility given the tradtional platform of the Democratic Party, principles of socialism and their advocacy of big government. Bush’s fiscal irresponsibility is more a conservative criticism than is is a liberal talking point or public policy criticism. The guy last night tried that one on me, but quickly went down in flames when I traced the economic policy history of the Democratic Party from the New Deal to the present time.
I like this approach, of asking questions and exposing the liberals general lack of knowledge and facts.
This can defuse a confrontation, and, in some cases, actually get the liberal to think about what you said and think more deeply about some issues he/she has “knee jerk” liberal views on.
The more people actually think and use reasoning ability, the more they see merit in conservative views. And while they may still have a liberal opinion, such as with healthcare for example, they may come to realize that socialized medicine won’t be free, and that as much as they love the idea, they will realize somebody has to pay for it.
Then they may start to question all sorts of big government solutions to social problems and realize they all have a cost, no matter how well intentioned the liberals are by favoring such programs.
I agree with you Ditter. My brother is conservative but works for a government agency and disagrees with articles I send him from here! Stands to reason because he gets all his info from .... government agencies!!
Besides, I've found that you cannot change the mind of a hard headed person who thinks they are always right. You just upset yourself trying.
Thanks for the comments and the ‘heads up’ when talking with a liberal.
Reason is the only universally accepted means of determining truth. You can’t find reason with these moon crickets. Their ability to misremember and misinterpret the past is absolutely legendary. My sugar count drops to near-coma levels when I talk politics with a uber-liberal hack.
Instead, I say to my liberal friends when going to a Chicago Cubs baseball game: “hey, you make more money than me so pick up my Cub tickets. They say, ‘why should I do that?’ Whereupon, I say, “cause you make more money than me and you should be able to help me cause I make less than you.... where they say, “that’s crazy, the fact that I make more money than you doesn’t give you a right to live off my spoils... buy your own ticket” And then I say, oh, ok, well, (fill in the blank yourself _________________)....
They don’t grasp the connection. It’s pathetic.
Depending on how set somebody is I prefer and have had good results with a more diplomatic approach.
Acknowledge their fears/concerns as legitimate. Calling them an idiot, demeaning them will just make them hostile and defensive. Ask them about their concerns fears and that may well bring up BDS or other liberal half-truths/legends. This is usually due to media representation, not a conscious effort at slander - here present them the facts in a direct and tactful manner.
Find what they are concerned about: the economy, jobs/industy, national defense, etc., and use that to your advantage.
One thing that I often do when talking with aquaintances is bring up the typical liberal line, but then say - but did you know - and then introduce the facts demonstrating the conservative approach. Don’t tell them what to think, but then ask them what they think.
Several of my friends, who were your typical college liberals have changed their views and it’s kinda funny to hear them defend gun ownership and our involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan now.
Most liberals are not. To that end I am reminded about the warning about wrestling pigs in the mud...
The best way to argue with a liberal is to ask them questions with answers already known and grounded in facts. Don’t tip your hand of your position, just ask more questions. They will expose themselves and you’ve saved yourself energy and strife.
“Bush got us into Iraq, JFK into Vietnam. Bush stole the election in Florida; Kennedy stole his in Chicago. Bush outed a CIA agent; Kennedy left hundreds of them to die in the surf at the Bay of Pigs. Bush lied about his military service; Kennedy accepted a Pulitzer Prize for a book written by Ted Sorenson. Bush was in bed with the Saudis, Kennedy with the Mafia. Oh.”
David Mamet converted to conservatism and writes about in an article called “Why I Am No Longer a ‘Brain-Dead Liberal’”:
http://www.villagevoice.com/2008-03-11/news/why-i-am-no-longer-a-brain-dead-liberal/
Though this quote may be kind of hard on Bush and open for disagreement, the liberals will sympathize. Mamet also makes some excellent points about the psychology behind the fairly tale land of liberalism.
I agree; you should not call anyone an idiot, fool, unpatriotic etc...but you can cerainly frame your comments in such a way that those hold liberal beliefs may for good reason be deserving of such appealations. And I would not back away from calling Obama something like an “inexperienced charlatan,” Harry Reid a forlorn fool, Nancy Pelosi “her nastiness” or whatever provocative and sarcastic names come to mind. I think last night I may have called a certain Massachusetts congressperson “a piece of pus” or something equally awful. Another thing on names and personalities; If the comment is made that “you just hate every Democrat or liberal politician” it is easy enough to reply with a litany of “Blue Dogs” that you admire and quote the wisdom of the pre-Clinton Democratic Party estaqblishment such as Daniel Patrick Moynihan who noted that “the central conservative truth is that it is culture, not politics, that determines the success of a society. The central liberal truth is that politics can change a culture and save it from itself.” My liberal friend agreed wholehearedly with the first part of this statement when I quoted it to him but looked quite perplexed when he tried to digest the second part. So much for liberal intellectual superiority.
That's a good time to accuse him of not caring because if you do away with electricity for refrigeration and gas for trucks food is just not going to get to the poor.
I pray that she sees the truth, for the lives of your future grandchildren. The highest sacrament of the true feminist is the right to kill them.
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