My wife got into an argument with someone who used to be a fairly rational but conservative person on facebook about Obama's trip to India. the girl was spouting off the lies about 200 million a day and my wife corrected her, explained what a state visit entailed, told her that state visits used to be viewed as positives with major trade partners and/or nuclear powers in unstable regions of the world. The girl's response?
Thank god for the second amendment.
Like some sort of thinly veiled threat against my wife, liberals, and the government. Kind of sent a chill through my spine and worried me for a bit. Is this really where we're going?
spoiler (click to show/hide)
Note this girl has also said in the past few days that Obamacare has ruined her chances of getting good insurance. When she finds a job that gives insurance, because right now her current job doesn't offer it.
That's both pretty horrible and completely unsurprising.
For whatever reason, "That's not actually true" can set people off into a rage way more than "I don't agree with that". Maybe factual corrections feel more like a direct assault on the basis of their worldview and self-identity, or it's the (intended or not) implication that they're dumb or untrustworthy.
But from personal experience, the few times I've accidentally got someone yelling in political discussions is when I've told them (as nicely as possible) that I looked on the internet, and Bill Clinton didn't have an ex-security guard killed/the CIA didn't have satellite photos of the Russians moving WMD's out of Iraq/the 1930's didn't have the highest global temperatures according to NASA. Which I said in the most non-confrontational way I could, even.
I dunno, man.
edit: That Greene Twitter feed is great. When I lose at SC2, I'm going to write "congratulations i played a good game, i give up" instead of gg.