Why are liberals so condescending? [Washington Post article]

[Hacp]

The real question you have to ask yourself is if it's a coincidence that 80% of teachers at every single level of education (grade school, middle school, high school, undergrad, and graduate) are overwhelming liberal, progressive and/or left-center in their political leanings. At some point you have to come to terms with the overwhelming reality that maybe, just maybe, you're wrong based on the evidence.

Maybe because they're union members...

 

[Perknose]

I always assumed that libs simply hated anyone that disagreed with them. It's certainly what turned me away from the progressive movement.

Sure it is. What really happened? You moved or went to college and got consistently out-argued, or at least out-numbered, and decided forever after to be entirely intolerant to an entire spectrum of American political thought?

There are intolerant assholes within every possible political outlook there is.

Just watch out, with blanket statements such as yours based on events that happened years ago that you aren't one of them.

 

[CallMeJoe]

All the engineers at my school are staunch conservatives, which flies in the face of state's claims.
and I bet my school is ranked higher than his...

If you're still in school, shouldn't you be referring to "engineering students and instructors"?

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

Sure it is. What really happened? You moved or went to college and got consistently out-argued, or at least out-numbered, and decided forever after to be entirely intolerant to an entire spectrum of American political thought?

There are intolerant assholes within every possible political outlook there is.

Just watch out, with blanket statements such as yours based on events that happened years ago that you aren't one of them.

<sneaks in>

LIBERAL

<runs away>

 

[Atreus21]

This is annoying.

There are only two options:

1. Liberals are in fact more condescending. As a conservative, this option is attractive to me, but...

2. Maybe that's just my bias talking, and liberals therefore are no more condescending than conservatives. Which in turn is attractive to liberals... Which means we can't objectively analyze anything, because our predispositions cloud our conclusions.

Jesus, I fucking hate these dilemmas.

I propose the following: Everyone links to every possible example of liberal or conservative condescension, and we'll publish the results. Whoever has the highest number of condescending articles will be crowned the King of Smug Prickitude, and that will be the name of the study.

 

[aphex]

Sure it is. What really happened? You moved or went to college and got consistently out-argued, or at least out-numbered, and decided forever after to be entirely intolerant to an entire spectrum of American political thought?

There are intolerant assholes within every possible political outlook there is.

Just watch out, with blanket statements such as yours based on events that happened years ago that you aren't one of them.

I could not agree with you more.

 

[shortylickens]

If I have to choose between mind-numbing hypocracy or condescension, I guess I'll go with condescension.

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

If I have to choose between mind-numbing hypocracy or condescension, I guess I'll go with condescension.

But when were they ever mutually exclusive?

 

[Perknose]

This is annoying.

Yup.

There are only two options:

That depends on whether you do "nuance" or not. I've read your posts, I know you do.

1. Liberals are in fact more condescending.

What's more likely is that those "liberals" who have been most condescending and annoying are the ones who stick in your mind.

Again, there are condescending asses pimping every known political viewpoint.

Hell, you even know it's not a black and white world:

Maybe that's just my bias talking, and liberals therefore are no more condescending than conservatives.

Jesus, I fucking hate these dilemmas.

Aw shucks, just call me Dave. ^_^

I propose the following: Everyone links to every possible example of liberal or conservative condescension, and we'll publish the results. Whoever has the highest number of condescending articles will be crowned the King of Smug Prickitude, and that will be the name of the study.

Seeing all this as a zero sum game, with but one total winner and one total loser -- us v. them -- is kind of what helped get us into this nasty little food fight to begin with, no?

 

[Patranus]

 

[Perknose]

<sneaks in>

LIBERAL

<runs away>

Big Poopy!

 

[Robor]

I think he's a buddhist, or very close to some eastern religions or something.

I dunno. The Buddhists I know are very nice people. Cool, friendly, helpful, and nonjudgmental. Definitely unlike Dari the poster here. :hmm:

 

[Robor]

Great episode! :awe:

 

[stateofbeasley]

just playing by the rules of the game you started-- claiming the engineers were more intelligent...

I claimed no such thing. What I said was that Engineers evaluate choices based on quantitative factors. Numbers. Physical and chemical properties. Cost/benefit analysis. Engineers design systems. You don't evaluate your design choices based on whether a particular design might be "socialist" or "liberal" or some other meaningless buzz phrase. Not if you want to stay in business.

I'm done arguing with you. Further debate is pointless because most of your responses are either incoherent, ignorant, or illogical.

 

[Cogman]

Ah, I love vast sweeping statements stereotyping large groups of people, it just makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside.

Because, as we ALL know, everyone in any group behaves exactly the same as someone else in that same group. Kind of like the borg! [/sarcasm]

 

[Moonbeam]

Moonbeam is by far the most condescending on this board. Worse, he is looked upto by others.

Check out Perknose's sig: Life is a long lesson in humility.

Think of me as here to help you with that. I should inform you that as a student you posses amazing potential. You haven't learned any humility yet and your arrogance stretches over a huge range. I am blessed I found you.

 

[woolfe9999]

This is annoying.

There are only two options:

1. Liberals are in fact more condescending. As a conservative, this option is attractive to me, but...

2. Maybe that's just my bias talking, and liberals therefore are no more condescending than conservatives. Which in turn is attractive to liberals... Which means we can't objectively analyze anything, because our predispositions cloud our conclusions.

Jesus, I fucking hate these dilemmas.

I propose the following: Everyone links to every possible example of liberal or conservative condescension, and we'll publish the results. Whoever has the highest number of condescending articles will be crowned the King of Smug Prickitude, and that will be the name of the study.

No, speaking as someone who is more left than right, I freely acknowledge that liberals clearly *are* more "condescending." However, condescension is not the only form of ridicule. The two opposing philosophies have different styles and methods of ridiculing the other. Liberals tend to paint conservatives as simpletons and fearmongers, whereas conservatives tend to paint liberals as representing foreign ideas, belief systems and interests (i.e. as people who we should not trust because they do not represent US but rather something foreign or alien to US.)

- wolf

 

[Corn]

Not nearly as much as Republicans. That's why the Democratic party failed to communicate on the Health Care issue. It takes time to explain the various components of proposed health care reform, and time to explain why it matters for the long term fiscal viability of the US.

"gut reaction" phrases like "death panel" and "socialism" and "government takeover" make really good 30 second sound bites that hit people's core fears and prejudices. The result was the rage and anger at Town Hall meetings last summer.

"no blood for oil", "Bush lied, thousands died!!!!", "change we can believe in". No emotion found there.

 

[Ozoned]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dy...AR2010020403698.html?hpid=opinionsbox1&sub=AR



Sums up my thoughts about the lib posters here. A nasty crowd of villainy and scum the likes of which the internet has never seen before.

I find the liberals here to be somewhat amicable.

What you don't understand is that liberalism was created on the foundation of true conservatism. (Was created is the key words there). They (liberals) must embrace liberalism in the same way a christian embraces his religion.

 

[stateofbeasley]

"no blood for oil", "Bush lied, thousands died!!!!", "change we can believe in".

The first two phrases are taken from things that people here on the left wrote or put in their signatures. These are not lines from the liberal political leadership. And nobody in their right mind seriously believes that the US invaded Iraq for oil. It was a failed attempt to spread democracy, and proof that Nation Building by force doesn't work. I only regret that it took another useless war and so many wasted lives and taxpayer dollars to prove this core Conservative principle.

"Change we can believe in" -- I grant you it is a meaningless slogan, sort of like "Compassionate Conservatism". Change We Can Believe it has ended up being Business As Usual, just like Compassionate Conservatism ended being Deficits Don't Matter.

But again, if you look at the Health Care debate, the Democrats consistently tried to argue on the issues, and they consistently got their asses handed to them by gleeful Republican operatives who talked about "death panels".

 

[brencat]

But again, if you look at the Health Care debate, the Democrats consistently tried to argue on the issues, and they consistently got their asses handed to them by gleeful Republican operatives who talked about "death panels".

Wrong. I'd argue that most rational common sense thinkers judged the health care bill on its merits (it sucked), didn't believe Obama or the politicians when they said that gutting Medicare of $500 billion while increasing the # of insured and lowering the deficit at the same time (that would have been a fvcking miracle), and generally don't trust the govt to be competent at anything (since it isn't).

Then if that weren't enough, the last straw was knowing we'd be paying for Nebraska's increased Medicaid share for life, and exempting the Dems sacred cow -- unions -- of any higher cadillac health plan taxes.

No...there was nothing good about this health bill. And it was judged perfectly on the issues -- the American people profoundly rejected it vis a vi the recent MA election and angry town halls.

But keep believing in your delusions -- it will only help conservatives at the polls come November.

 

[nick1985]

A nasty crowd of villainy and scum

I hear they frequent this bar too:

 

[ProfJohn]

The real question you have to ask yourself is if it's a coincidence that 80% of teachers at every single level of education (grade school, middle school, high school, undergrad, and graduate) are overwhelming liberal, progressive and/or left-center in their political leanings. At some point you have to come to terms with the overwhelming reality that maybe, just maybe, you're wrong based on the evidence.

Did it ever occur to you that they are overwhelmingly liberal because they have never had to deal with reality??

Oh... and for the record academic liberals aren't concerned about facts and figures, they are concerned about efforts and feelings and 'trying.' Like my liberal arts teacher who talked about how Jimmy Carter gave that speech about turning the heat down during the oil crisis and how wonderful it was that he 'cared.'

 

[Jhhnn]

I think I can end this thread right here-

Who's more condescending than Limbaugh? O'Reilly? Coulter?

 

[nick1985]

I think I can end this thread right here-

Who's more condescending than Limbaugh? O'Reilly? Coulter?

Olbermann by a factor of 10?