I just survived my first serious Freeper internet encounter

[renie408]

and did pretty darn well, I think.

I was posting on another board completely unrelated to politics, when I ran across this:

>>This is the greatest country in the world. We have the best medical care, the best water, food, medicines, homes, acreage, if you want it, you can get it here. You can be modest in your consumption or extravagant. You can be a republican or a democrat or an independent. Worship how and when you want or not at all. You get a free education for your children and if you work hard you can almost achieve any dream that you have. This is the greatest place to live on the earth, bar none. And it must explain why everyone wants to live here. What I will never understand is why people, especially Americans, put it down.<<

So I wrote back:

>>You have to know that isn't technically true. There are other countries with higher life expectancies, better educational standards, who treat their poor better and there are a WHOLE lotta people who have no interest in living here. (I am pretty sure that there are also countries with cleaner water supplies AND cleaner air, but I have to look that up)

So, does the fact that I can recognize that mean that I don't love my country? No more than recognizing that my husband isn't perfect means that I don't love him. He isn't perfect or the BEST in the world at anything,
I imagine. But he is perfect for me and he is the best husband I could imagine. That doesn't mean that I don't think there are things he could work on (me too).

That's how I feel about this country. If we pat ourselves wrongly on the back for having the BEST water supply when we don't...how can we ever MAKE it the best? If we blindly say, "America has the best health care in the world." when maybe it isn't so...how can we improve it? Once you are the BEST, you don't have a whole lot of room for improvement. And acknowledging that there IS room for improvement doesn't mean that you don't love this country. I couldn't imagine living anywhere else. I even love my state. I think it is the best state in the country...for me. But I know we have a lot of things that need a lot of work. It isn't a sign that I hate my state. It is a sign that I love it enough to want to make it better. Just like my country. <<


They replied that I was 'disloyal' and 'condescending'. Bizarre, huh? It is 'disloyal' to acknowledge facts.
(BTW...I looked up links for life expectancy, infant mortality and national environmental health and supplied those.)

Oh, and I learned that they have the hots for Fred Thompson. There were maybe ten (?) people there that started talking enthusiastically about Thompson. I didn't touch that.

[Minimus]

1. Great response!!

:yourock:

[renie408]

6. Thanks. I spent the whole afternoon civilly disagreeing with

an entire board of republicans. It is actually a weight loss board and I had no idea they were almost all Republicans until I saw that comment. When I started disagreeing, they were pretty hostile. But I just kept being as nice as I could be and just presented facts and stats complete with links. I was careful to only use really impeccable sources, too. In the end, they were actually civil in return. I only had one person still saying things about leftie commies infiltrating their space. But OH MY GOD!! I was really amazed at the level of total irrationality. And that's not just because of our political differences. When I quoted the life expectancy stats and gave the stat about 18,000 Americans dying every year for lack of health insurance, the lead guy dismissed them by saying, "I think the US has the best health care system in the world."

How do you have a conversation with that? For the most part I didn't even try. But I am hoping I gave them something to think about.

[Vanje]

22. "I think the US has the best health care system in the world."

"I wouldnt know. I havnt been able to afford health care for years."

[BleedingHeartPatriot]

2. You did way better with your first than I did with mine. Nicely written!

:toast: MKJ

[BlueJazz]

3. renie408.....You are capable of Multi-Faceted thinking.

If you continue to talk to Right-wingers, you'll see that they think in one-dimensional terms....only.
:)

[renie408]

8. Oh yeah. I got that from the getgo. They were so closed minded. It was scary. n/t

[mcscajun]

4. You did great!

If the freeper involved runs true to form, he'll disparage your sources, go all ad hominem, then wind up by stating his "beliefs" which, of course, always trump facts in freepworld.

Feel free to disengage at any point. They are impervious to facts, even when presented calmly and delivered by the ton. :eyes:

[izzie]

5. I personal think this is a great country and it could do better

I guess it is a fact some people just do not want to face. You gave some good answers but one bets they did not stick.

[Name removed]

7. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[BlueJazz]

17. I happen to know from studies that people who buy Macs are.....

....inferior to other users.

[tech3149]

9. Kudos! Nice comeback, not argumentative, just showing we can do better

It hurts to realize that there are people out there who don't know the facts and are willing to accept the BS they're sold as being true. It hurts even more when those people are intelligent enough to know better.

[renie408]

13. My gut reaction was to reply, "Oh for chrissakes..."

But then I started thinking that the only chance I had to maybe...just maybe...have any impact was to stay civil and just keep repeating facts...with the proper links, of course.

I cannot honestly say it worked. But several of them complemented me on being a 'reasonable' liberal!! Felt kind of creepy.

[Catherine Vincent]

10. You did great.

They have someone that THINKS in their group. You shocked them. :)

[The_Casual_Observer]

11. That post reminds me of some old recording of a guy going on & on

about america and technocracy - whatever that is, & how this was the greatest place on earth. It is all bullshit of course, it's a stale meaningless old rw AM radio mantra.

[Sarah Ibarruri]

12. All right wingers are jingoistic. And you did great, by the way! nt

[zbdent]

14. and nine of the ten

were named Larry Craig ...

[renie408]

15. LOL n/t

[timtom]

16. Well executed!

Personally, I can't handle it. I start foaming at the mouth and my eyes go back in my head.

So many total idiots! So little time...

[Elwood P Dowd]

18. Iceland has much better water and air.

Also, better health care, education, longer life expectancies, less poverty, etc., etc., etc..

A little European piece of rock just south of the Arctic Circle is a better place to live than the USA.

[MisterHowdy]

19. simple logic and facts will beat them every time.

n/t

[MadMaddie]

20. What a great response...you did great...

I think we will have to admit...

Rethuglicans are satisfied with "Average",they have no desire to excel and broaden their horizens...whether by going outside of their comfort zone by reading a book or going to see a controversial movie or person...

They are "Average Cowards"......and they voted for a less than average President...

[WilliamPitt]

21. Call him Frederick of Hollywood whenever you find a fan of his

Someone here coined that one, and it's freakin' gold.

[monmouth]

23. Great response. Heads must have exploded over "facts." eom

[xchrom]

24. good for you!!! well done and well reasoned.

:applause:

[Lasher]

25. This is easy to do

Freeptards are stupid.

[Roland99]

26. Like Colbert said, "Facts have a liberal bias."

:)

[Norrin Radd]

27. Oh noes !!11 You am disloyal !!!1

Are they gonna break your sabre like they did to Chuck Connors?

Fantastic reply on your part, but they can't compute nuanced thinking and logic. Better just to tell him or her to go f!ck yourself with his or her whole lack of a reply with substance. Refuge of the scoundrel.