Random minor venting

[izhilzha]

This is the only time I am ever going to say this, because I generally find it bad form to complain about the way people with opposite opinions express them--and complaining in that fashion about political views is enough to get one flame-broiled around LJ.

Comments

[kerravonsen]

pretending like they've interviewed all conservatives and found them to be mentally retarded.

As has been said, happens on all sides of the fence.

I think it is tempting to ascribe things to stupidity because it's a way of making sense of decisions that appear to be nonsensical from the PoV of the speaker. And because it's kinder than attributing them to malice. ("Never attribute to malice that which can be explained by stupidity")

They are wondering why Those Other People don't see things which are bleedin' obvious to them. (And, heck, I wonder that myself, when contemplating the decisions of politicians.) Because if it's something obvious, and they seem to be ignoring it, well, they must be stupid, then. It's the easy, no-thought-required answer. (Wheras my usual answer is to sigh and say, "Well, they obviously don't think it's important when I do..." -- that is, not that they're stupid, but that they don't care. Hmmmm. But it's hard to call John Howard stupid. He isn't. He just doesn't care... (pokes out tongue)) (Oh

[izhilzha]

I think it is tempting to ascribe things to stupidity because it's a way of making sense of decisions that appear to be nonsensical from the PoV of the speaker.

Mmm. And, as you note, because it absolves you of presenting arguments against said apparently-nonsensical POV.

And because it's kinder than attributing them to malice. ("Never attribute to malice that which can be explained by stupidity")

I see what you're saying, and maybe this is why I see more liberals than conservatives going this route (the dumb conservatives have no problem labelling their opponents "malicious" or "immoral"). However, I can argue if someone calls my point-of-view or idea "malicious". But if their attitude is "oh, poor thing, she's retarded, don't encourage her," I see red and am severely tempted to black an eye or bloody a nose. When someone puts me beneath them, it feels like they've taken away my voice as effectively as if they'd rewritten the First Amendment.

Unfortunately, me, I throw up my hands because I fear that there aren't any good

[whitemartyr]

I hope it wasn't my rant that made you write this. Because you know I try to be fair, it's just that sometimes I go a little nuts. :p

[izhilzha]

I actually didn't read your rant. :-) It did inspire this, however, because it seems like all the liberals on LJ (who are the majority, apparently) post when they please about such things. I've always tried to kind of be "above" that, the way I do at work, but I've been wanting to say these three things since the election last year, so I figured it wouldn't hurt to just get them out of my system, once. *shrug*

You're Canandian, anyway; you get special dispensation where the US is concerned, which I would not extend to Americans who have no idea how their own government works. *eyeroll*

[whitemartyr]

Ahh so you wanted to have your say. Good. I think you should. And you're right. It's not really fair when there's no answer. I hate war, but I don't have an answer for how to deal with terrorists. I won't pretend to think that just saying 'peace on earth' will help because peace on earth isn't gonna happen til Jesus returns, and even then won't come til a whole lot of baddies get burned. LOL. Mostly I'm just nervous about what I can see happening, as an outsider...and that is that it seems like the freedoms of Americans are being stripped away. And that makes me mad...and sad. Because I like many of the foundations and ideas that America was built on.

[whitemartyr]

and Bush really, honestly, makes me nervous as a leader because he seems to be too easily influenced by others in government or the military and not enough of his own man. I don't know that all of this badness that's happening is his fault, I mean hey, it's rarely just one man that makes an empire fall (though sometimes it is). I just don't like what I see happening and how paranoid and fearful people are becoming, even if it's justifiable, because of actions taken by Bush's administration and militarily.