[NC Conservative]

Not a real interesting post, just for discussion.

[LibWhacker]

One of the best parting lines I've ever heard, penned by some brilliant unknown freeper, and always sure to get deep under the skin of any liberal is, "garbage in, garbage out."

[ResistorSister]

I guess you should question why you are arguing with them...I mean...its not as if you are going to change their minds. :-)

[Alberta's Child]

As Thomas Sowell once said, "Liberals thrive in places like academia and the media because these are areas where failure is never punished."

[Constantine XIII]

"Don't try to teach a pig to sing. You'll only frustrate yourself and annoy the pig." --Mark Twain

Though not ALL libs are swine, mostly the famous ones. Good luck to ya! :O)

[Phantom Lord]

I always make any argument with a liberal personal.

One liberal I know owns a 2nd home in the mountains and drives a Range Rover.

I constantly point out to him that he is acting like an evil conservative and that if he truly believed the liberal crap he preeches he would allow homeless people to inhabit his 2nd home and he would have bought a small, fuel efficient car and donated the price difference form his Range Rover to the US or State Treasury in addition to his regular taxes.

Or try to bum $20 bucks off him. You clearly don't need it Paul and you are earning more than your fair share. Give some to me.

[sauropod]

All the time.

Point out to them that it is LIBERAL policies that keep the poor poor.

[joltinjoe]

Extreme liberalism is a suicidal mental disorder. Don't waste your time.

[tcostell]

My all time favorite counter to liberal arguments comes from the second amendment debate. I just ask how well they think Pinochet's overthrow of the Communist government in Chile would have gone if everyone in Chile kept a gun in their home?

(This is sort of a political version of the "if god is all powerful can he make a rock so big that he himself can't lift it" joke)

Also, I've found that libs don't make decisions based upon facts but upon emotions, so the only real way to argue with them is with emotional arguments.

They are "cruel and heartless" for eliminating jobs from the third world by fighting capitalism. they are "vicious and hateful" for increasing taxes for social programs by making the middle class pay for the poor. This last one really gets them because they say taxes aren't paid by the rich, but they also say that tax cuts still go to the rich. (it doesn't have to make sense to a lib)

[Blood of Tyrants]

Liberals are liberals for three reasons. They are evil or they are stupid or they are ignorant. If after repeated attempts to educate them (and they are not major players in the political system) they still repeat the same mantra, then they are in the stupid catagory.

Conservatism requires thought and insight and decision making based on facts. Liberalism only requires emotionalism and the IQ of a blade of grass.

Stop wasting your time. You'll cause less damage to your heart and live longer.

[mushroom]

The worst example I've seen lately was a co-worker (an intelligent person in other ways) blithely telling me that we could cut drug costs 40% if the federal government contracted for the drugs like they do in Canada. When asked what he thought the profit margin of the drug companies was, he allowed as how it was probably 10%. I then asked how a company making 10% could lower its prices by 40% and stay in business. He suddely had a previously unannounced meeting to attend.

How he got that was is easy, his parents were government employees, he went to a liberal (not liberal arts) college, and he absorbs the bilge on NPR at every opportunity.

[Blood of Tyrants]

P.S. Remember, HALF the population has an IQ lower than average. I suspect most of them are liberals or blindly vote for liberals.

[ZGuy]

For those who can be reached, one good thing to do is always start by saying "You know, I used to think that way too, but then I found out . . . ."
You then, appear as an objective observer and the seed is planted that they are being taken for a chump. And no one likes to feel that they are being taken for a chump.

In your face, "Here's the facts" argumentation never works. It generates lots of heat, but very little light.

Don't waste your time on die-hard liberals though. Reach those who can be reached and forget the others.

[Blackdakota]

Comes from childhood and is further reinforced in college. When its all you hear growing up and those neuro pathways get set, its a small chance they'll ever listen to anything else. THen it becomes a defense mechanism as they get older when you point out contradicting facts to their beliefs. You'll never win an argument with one based on the fact they'd rather go to their grave arguing with you then to face the fact they've been wrong all this time.

[foolish-one]

You're never going to win an argument with a liberal - or even get them to concede a point - because the whole purpose for being a liberal is to feel good about yourself. It's not about right or wrong or what's best for the country or even any group or individual, only what makes "ME" feel good. Therefore they will deny anything that contradicts their position to the point of absurdity because to do otherwise would cause them to "not feel so good". Just thinking could be painful, so it must be avoided, if necessary, to preserve the self-satisfaction and esteem of the saintly liberal.

If your intention is true meritorious debate, save your mental energy and sanity and walk away. If, however, you're in it for the entertainment value to yourself and those within hearing (and the potential educational benefit to those not already predisposed to out-of-the-closet liberalism), have fun!

[ken5050]

Don't waste the time.....buy a case of cold beer, sit around drinking it all day..put your TV on C-span 2...mute it..and everytime Daschle, or Kennedy, or Byrd comes on, throw an empty at the TV screen ( oh, yeah, forgot to mention..get the plastic bottles......) you'll have a headache in the mornign, same as you would by arguing with liberals, but you'll have enjoyed getting it...

[2banana]

Tell him about the policies of the Nazis (that is short for National Socialists) and Karl Marx. You will have to do some research but their policies nearly match the Democratic positions

[KayEyeDoubleDee]

I often wonder whether being such a close-minded, racist, homophobic, big oil worshipping, male chauvanist pig somehow prevents me from seeing the wisdom in my liberal friends' tiny little minds. Whoops, did I say "tiny?"

On the other hand, I knew a liberal girl who taught eighth grade social studies. Naturally, she indoctrinated the kids with all kinds of marxist nonsense. One day I pointed out to her the real facts behind the mythical "glass ceiling", which was part of the agenda for class the next day. After she made it plain to me that these facts wouldn't be part of her lecture, I realized that she was basically a lost cause (and I shudder to think about her students) and the only hope was that one day she would wake up and see the light b/c she sure as hell wouldn't listen to me.

The other possibility is that these people are just evil, but I like to be a bit more optimistic...

[stands2reason]

I am an ex-liberal. Many on this site are. Those who say, "Give up" are losers.

[Jim Scott]

Not a real interesting post, just for discussion.

Actually, it's a very interesting post as many FReepers have been exactly where you are now. Attempting to argue with liberal friends, relatives or co-workers and getting nowhere, fast. It's frustrating.

I don't try much anymore after a getting into a loud, table-pounding argument over Clinton at a dinner party given by some good friends a few years ago.

Now, I avoid discussing political personalities like Clinton or Bush or even specific laws or bills. That gets bogged down in details and everyone gets off on some tangent. I just try to find what they actually believe in; their political philosophy. They usually have none or spout bumper-sticker slogans. Nothing is solved of course but the vapidness of their beliefs becomes a bit clearer - to both of us.

If you can't change their minds at least be able to point out that their argument is mostly emotion and a parroting liberal cliches.

[rintense]

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