The litmus test:
Jusat because it has come upo SEVERAL times in the past couple of days, here’s a litmus test I use for bullshit, and it rarely fails. It has never, ever failed me.
If someone approaches you with an idea,or a product, or a service, either bidden or unbidden, and attempts to sell it to you as if it is the second coming itself, that idea, poroduct, or service is most likely a load of shit.
Witness the religious zeal and fervor with which people will describe or defend the following:
Apple computers. PC computers. Amiga computers. Commodore computers. Ipods. Iphones. Blackberries. Treos. Razr phones.
Winamp. Itunes. Media player. Photoshop. World of Warcraft. Wii. Playstation. Atari. Ford. Chevy. Toyota. Chrysler. Pontiac. Mercury. Subaru. Jaguar. Audi. Mercedes. Glowbull Warming. Glowbull cooling. Acid rain.Amway. Hebalife. Aloe vera. Da Vinci code. Morse code. Ikea. Obama. Minnesota(ok, I put that one in there to see if you were paying attention). Judaism. Catholicism. Calvinism. Tattoos. Piercing. Nose rings, wedding bands, hair bands, dry hands. Most recently, here, Anarchism, Collectivism, Objectivism, yadda yadda yadda. If someone steps up to the plate to defend something so strongly they feel prepared to come to blows about it, it is unquestionably themselves they are trying to convince, that the idealogical tent they have made for themselves is the correct one, and will manufacture all kinds of evidence to prove their tent is the only correct one.
Me, I try to take a different route. I have objectively looked at all types of governmnet, and I have objectively looked at all types of people, and I have great faith that our little republic is the least bad of a field of horrible choices. ALL forms of government, and yes, Anarchy is a form of government, are full of shit, and I would never espouse ANY of them as the be all and end all. On the other hand, I can easily see that a lot of what’s out there for alternatives bites mule cock. So be wary of anyone selling their ideas like religion, you might just find out their god is P.T. barnum.
HEY! I’m in Minnesota right now, and it’s awesome! At least my brother tells me so, but he’s trying to get me to move closer so we can go ice fishing together. He claims it is warm out on the ice somehow.
But Yes. The “next best thing” or “solution to all your problems” is usually about as good as Shimmer (It’s a floor wax! No, it’s an ice cream topping!)
“If someone steps up to the plate to defend something so strongly they feel prepared to come to blows about it, it is unquestionably themselves they are trying to convince, that the idealogical tent they have made for themselves is the correct one, and will manufacture all kinds of evidence to prove their tent is the only correct one.â€
Hey man! I do that! But that’s me in search mode as there are times when I REALLY want an answer.
But it requires sincere dialogue and not word-fighting. Honesty from both sides: Pure and unrefined. It is then that I truly can be convinced otherwise. A true believer that becomes unconvinced – but over a period of time (as it takes time for it to sink in).
But when they start playin word games: time to flush ‘em down the toilet like they richly deserve.
PS: Minnesota is the bestus place on earth! And the Bears still suck.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQxEvv4_8Mk&feature=related
(And the Peckers suck too…)
Oh, jees, I FORGOT the sports teams.
Cond, you know what I mean. There’s a difference between standing up for what is right, like our founding fathers, and fighting because you believe “mac Rulez!!!”
Uh huh… sure Og… ;)
You left out Saturn cars, and Glock vs. 1911. :-)
I carry a 1911 rather than a G27 whenever it’s practical, but Texas summers… hoo boy.
I take some degree of pride in that, while I kinda like a few of the things in Og’s list, I’m not gonna try to “convert” anybody to any of them.
The Bill of Rights, on the other hand… “is not negotiable. Not one single part, not ever”. Hope I got that quote right; didn’t want to wake Lisa by going into the closet to check on it.