Thanks, TE.
I have always divided liberals into thirds:
The first third are the “feel gooders”, and uninformed useful idiots. Some of these can be reasoned with, some can be informed, and some have their hearts in the right place, but are wrong. Some are just ignorant and stupid. All useful idiots.
The second third are the dedicated liberals with fevered brows, heads chock-full of leftist dogma, spittle on their lips. They are the foot soldiers of the Left, marching unknowingly, unlearningly, and unheedingly into the machine guns of facts. These people are dogmatic idiots who know all the party lines and recite them like bleating sheep. “Four legs good, two legs bad...” ect. These people cannot be redeemed without a life changing event on their side (like a mugging) or...they simply get older and wiser...they grow up. Some then drop into the previously mentioned third, and some become conservative.
The last third are fully invested and view the other two thirds of liberals as idiots to be used. Obama, Hillary, Ted Kennedy, etc. They are evil Alinskyites in my eyes, have contempt for the people they use, and understand liberalism isn’t about getting health care for people or protecting the environment, or whatever. They understand liberalism is all about power and control over others. That is what they know. These are the people we will go to war against if it ever comes to that.
That is an excellent breakdown. Some of my friends fit into the first third. It’s still nearly pointless to try to reason with them but occasionally circumstances do present the opportunity. I’ve found that I have the chance to make one point and then drop it. It then takes time (sometimes years) for the point to have a noticeable affect on their thinking. Most of them are just growing out of it, as you say, and my input is only a small part of it.
I don’t have any friends in the 2nd or 3rd categories. Unfortunately I do have some relatives in the 2nd one. I practice absolute minimal contact with them and they seem to know better than to bring up politics in my presence.