They're lying to you - Democratic Underground

mudesi

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Mon Apr-30-07 10:48 PM
Original message

They're lying to you

Edited on Mon Apr-30-07 10:55 PM by lynyrd_skynyrd

These are the four words that I inevitably end up saying whenever I encounter a conservative minded person. I have found it to be quite effective in dealing with their misguided "opinions" (in quotes because an opinion based on a lie is not an opinion).

Try it sometime. Just calmly and rationally tell them after they're done spouting disinformation (or gently interrupt them while they're spouting falsehoods) these simple words: "They're lying to you". I like to prepend their name, as in "Jack, they're lying to you".

Other longer variations include phrases such as "Jack, I understand your point of view, but it's based on lies that have been told to you", "Jack, I hear you, but you only believe that because they lied to you", "You can repeat it as many times as you like, it doesn't make it true. They're lying to you", etc....

Now, here in Canada, the probability of encountering a Bush sympathizer is in the ballpark of 0.000001%, but we have our conservatives here, too. They are slightly less insane than their American counterparts, but they will occasionally repeat the small trickle of Bush propaganda that finds its way onto our airwaves.

I remember back in 2003 when I heard one tell me "Saddam has WMD". I replied with "Have you seen any evidence of this?" and he replied with "I saw it on CNN ". I said: "Dave, they're lying to you". He didn't believe me then, but he believes me now.

When someone tells you Saddam had ties to Al Qaeda - They're lying to you.

When they say universal health care costs more - They're lying to you.

When they say abortion causes breast cancer - They're lying to you.

When they say gun control doesn't work - They're lying to you.

When they say global warming is not man made, or is not happening at all, or is caused by natural cycles - They're lying to you.

When they say abstinence only education works - They're lying to you.

When they say the media is liberally biased - They're lying to you.

When they say privatization and deregulation is always better than keeping public goods in public hands - They're lying to you.

When they say social programs are "useless" and "a waste of money" and "have no benefit" - They're lying to you.

Most importantly, when they respond with "I have a right to my opinion", make sure to point out that their opinion is not at all valid because it is the product of lies.

It's an effective technique of argument. I have found that there is no real reason to have a debate with someone when someone doesn't even have the facts to back anything up. Direct them to the many, many, (many) sources of research that can be found in any number of places, the Internet being a very useful tool in many cases. Tell them -after informing them that they have been lied to- to look up the relevant facts and get back to you.

Much of the time, I've noticed that they either don't bother and concede defeat, or they do bother and change their positions. Of course, this is assuming that you're dealing with a somewhat rational person. The irrational will simply go on believing whatever falsehoods they believe even after you point them to the facts. These are the hopeless individuals, and I would advise to not waste your time on them.