As liberals we seem to spend a lot of time responding to the nonsense that conversatives throw at us, and it's a problem. Personally, it seems like it might be something that we sort of like to do, as being rationalists we like to tangle with logical fallacies and defeat them, but sometimes it feels like we are in one of those chase scenes where we are trying to catch a mugger who keeps throwing things in our path and we're spending all of our time putting things back where they were before continuing the pursuit, like some sort of super hero with OCD. In the end, we aren't catching many of the bad guys because of this.
I think we can put our rationalism to better use. We need to spend the time answering each other's questions about our beliefs and working out reasonably consensus answers and not bothering to explain ourselves unless someone really wants to know. Also, we need to dig at the underlying evils that their beliefs sit upon and bring them to light. For instance,
Mr Bush, I noticed your tax cuts benefited you greatly, you received xxxx dollars back from the government, why is it that you believe you being wealthier benefits the middle class and working families?
Of course he does, actually. It's something that he has believed all his life, but its not something that he can say without severe political damage. We can use this on a great many of the talking heads and pundits as well.
I noticed that you are promoting the ban on gay marriage, why are you a homophobe?
Again, of course he is, but would never let himself be titled that way, yet its an easy association to make and should be asked over and over again, and it's the dead on truth.
Since we already have "privatized" 401(k) benefits, why are you for cutting social security benefits for the sick and elderly who have spent a lifetime paying for them.
They have no idea how to make up the huge shortfall of funds that will happen from cutting social security taxes (which is the only thing that "privatization" means, period), so I'd assume that cutting benefits for people who already paid for them is the only solution that is possible (other then quadrupling the already enormous deficit).
I think its interesting that each time you say "praise god" or something close to that in church you are probably saying the last thing that each of the 9/11 terrorists said before they crashed their planes and kill thousands of people. Do you ever wonder why you find yourself believing the same thing they do?
Remind people what the face of religious extremism looks like. Many of these things will probably bring them to a frothing Bill O'Reilly-esque rage, but nonetheless it's just a truth and we don't have to apologize for it.
You're constantly saying that you believe in the sanctity of life, yet are personally responsible for the deaths of over 125 people while governor of Texas, and untold tens of thousands of Iraqis. Why are 4 cell zygotes more important to you then actual living people?
These could go on and on, and possibly refined as well, but even just as is and written quickly I think they would be really affective. We just need to have confidence in our own beliefs because they are just better and not worry as much about explaining them to people whose minds we can't change. We also need to calmly and consistently attack these major points of hypocrisy that underlie conservative beliefs and expose them for what they really are: irrational and selfish. Maybe it's seems dirty or negative to go this route, but really, it's it worst to let the truth go unnoticed?