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If you were offended at Perry’s remark he was on target and managed to “out” the thin skin wimps.

You might want to THINK about your response before you post it.

Perry deliberately insulted anyone who disagreed with his position rather than offering a reasoned justification. His whole response is predicated on feelings, rather than thought.

I'm frankly surprised that conservatives are so willing to debase the core of conservatism - the rational thought process.

Perry, for me, is still a possibility, but he's skating on thin ice in some ways. His thoughtlessness is just one of those ways.

Perry deliberately insulted anyone who disagreed with his position rather than offering a reasoned justification. His whole response is predicated on feelings, rather than thought. I'm frankly surprised that conservatives are so willing to debase the core of conservatism - the rational thought process. Perry, for me, is still a possibility, but he's skating on thin ice in some ways. His thoughtlessness is just one of those ways.

These "30 Second Sound Bite" Contests that pass for "debates" nowadays do not lend themselves very well to "reasoned justification" of any complex issue.

"Fence = Good"

"No Fence = You are Pro-Illegal"

Try explaining, in 30 seconds, that even the Israelis are not building a Fence in the middle of the Negev Desert, the equivalent of the Texas desert, and instead are relying on, as Perry advocated, a combination of a Fence in the highly populated areas and, for the desert regions, boots on the .....

DING! DING! DING! "Your time is up, Sir."

Perry is a terrible debater. (See the article in Post 230.) He screwed up in a "30 Second Sound Bite" contest where sound bites written by staffers are often memorized by candidates. (The "Where's the beef" sound bite had to be taught and explained to Mondale because he had never seen a Wendy's commercial.)

Perry has since apologized.

We'll see how he fares in the next debate.

As far as "insulted anyone who disagreed with his position rather than offering a reasoned justification. His whole response is predicated on feelings, rather than thought. I'm frankly surprised that conservatives are so willing to debase the core of conservatism - the rational thought process."

Well, .... ummm .... How can I put this in a non-judgmental manner?

I can't.

In the past year, have you ever been on any thread on FR and tried to rationally discuss the merits of a Palin candidacy or dared to imply that Sarah Palin did not walk on water?

After leaving the thread, you and the horse you rode in on looked like Saint Sebastian.

How do you know that Perry deliberately insulted anyone?
How do you know his motives?

IMO, it appeared to be a bit of indignant response to something that he might think is a non-issue since it is 10 years old, practiced in nearly a dozen other states, was overwhelmingly mandated by the legislature, and effects less than 2% of each college class.

That being said, it infuriated me when I moved to Texas and found out that those kids paid less for college than mine.

Rationally? Making the few of them pay more doesn’t do anything to help me. Nada. Nothing.

Rationally, finding out that the Feds won’t stop the influx of illegals; that the feds demand and require that we pay for medical care, school, and welfare; knowing that we cannot deport them and that we’re stuck with them, it makes sense to allow them to attend collsege at the resdient rate given that they meet resident requirements.

This is an emotionally charged issue; it gets people riled, and if you’re getting riled over it, then you are feeling and not thinking, not being rationa.

Rationally, what solutions do you offer?

Rationally, how do you call a program that, in reality is a very minor issue, and was almost unanimously adopted by a Red State legislature a liberal effort?

If you don’t live in Texas, it isn’t your business. Perry never offered this as a national model.

Maybe YOU need to think more about the issue instead of putting it into a binary go/no-go narrow minded template that taps into emotions and get knees jerking instead of minds thinking.

So boo hoo, you got your toes stepped on. Cry me a river.