*I don’t get really believing a person is evil based on their stance on abortion *
This makes perfect sense to me. I’m puzzled over the same thing, myself.
I guess I should have opened this thread earlier. It is always amusing to see Shodan libeling me with his sins. 
Sarahfeena, I’ve been able to maintain a healthy relationship with or attitude toward several Dopers who have conservative viewpoints. Shodan and Starving Artist are two of them. There are others. It happened when I could see beyond their politics to something else in their lives that was of enduring value.
I don’t dislike you, but I feel that I don’t know you. You come across to me as very sensitive to be posting in the Pit. You took offense once when someone else and I used the word “flounce” to describe your possible impending exit in some way. Yes, we were goading you, but “flounce” is not exactly a big time insult.
I believe that you truly see me this way. Do you believe that I am that way to all Dopers in my behavior or that all Dopers see me from the same point of view? (It isn’t important that you answer to me.)
I can understand why you would see these traits in me. I have a tendency to be crabby and outspoken.
This week I had throat surgery, sore tendons, and pneumonia. Now get off of my lawn!
Do you think that it’s rare for a conservative to have something else in their lives that is of enduring value? I’m not sure what kind of conservative you find in your neck of the woods, but I’m guessing that they have a tendency to be less moderate than I am, so maybe it’s harder for you to find a meeting of the minds with them? Of course Shodan and Starving Artist are much more conservative than I am, too, so maybe that’s not a factor?
I’m not too sensitive for the pit…the pit is meant to be a place where you can offend people, and I got offended. Maybe offended isn’t even the word…I got pissed off. So what? I doubt you said it because you thought it was going to make me chuckle and give me sweet dreams that night. I told you to fuck off, as I recall, and I would probably say it again in the same circumstance. I don’t see where any of that is inappropriate or overly-sensitive pit behavior.
I hope your surgery went well and you’re on the road to recovery!
I didn’t know multiple personalities were described as a “small circle of friends” these days. 
GFactor, I’m happy to have you leave the thread open, but I’m curious, why the waiting period?
Well then your day is complete…you’ve learned something today. As have I…that being that DSYoungEsq is a master of projection.
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I’ve been experimenting with this approach, especially in cases where the OP requests the thread to be closed.
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I see no reason to close a thread like this immediately in the first place;
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Sometimes the OP requests a thread closure because the it backfired. Traditionally, those threads haven’t been closed in the Pit. I intend to continue that tradition, but as I’ve said elsewhere, the fact that the thread turned against the OP doesn’t mean it has to stay open forever, so this is a middle course. If people think the thread should stay open, they’ve got a chance to object; if they just want to say something before it closes, they’ve got a shot at it.
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It saves me the trouble of reading every post in a long-ish thread like this just to make sure there’s not some reason to keep it open.
Here’s my current thinking on thread closures, generally. These are not rules at all, they are just an explanation of how I think about requests to close or reopen a thread.
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They are procedural. In most cases, nobody has a *right *to have a thread open or closed. It’s about convenience and efficiency. There are some special cases, in which there may be a great reason to close a thread, but in most cases, those reasons are based on some more substantive concern.
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Starting a thread that gets closed isn’t going to draw any sort of warning from me unless there’s something else going on. I might warn somebody for trolling or opening a thread that I’ve specifically told them not to open, but beyond that, it’s just a procedural thing.
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I’m always willing to reconsider a thread closing or refusal to close a thread. As I said, it’s procedural, and it’s not a big deal.
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I usually start with the assumption that the thread stays open and need to be convinced that it needs to be closed. But this is a procedural assumption, I don’t think there is a right answer in most of these cases.
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If I close a thread, that doesn’t imply that another thread can’t be started on the same topic.
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Unless there’s a good reason to close a thread immediately, I try to give folks an opportunity to make that last post or convince me to leave the thread open.
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I’ve got limited time and attention, so if a thread is very long, I’m more inclined to close it, subject to all of the other stuff I’ve said.
Thanks for your thoughts, GFactor…looks like this thread came to some good use after all! 
I actually kind of like the idea of the waiting period. We’ve all had the experience of wanting to post sonething to a thread and finding it closed. And it makes sense to let posters make a case for keeping it open. I was just curious because I hadn’t seen it before.
Who is this DSYoungEsq of whom you speak? 
You’re good enough, you’re smart enough, and doggone it, people like you.
Most of the conservatives I know are through my club and went to Vanderbilt. Since Nashville is a liberal city, the subject of politics is generally avoided at social functions through the club. But most of the people that I know there and elsewhere around here are Democrats and liberals. I do have one friend who quietly harbored some racist feelings that came out all at once and that led to a three year silence between us. I sometimes wonder why she calls herself a Democrat. We’ve been friends for over sixty years.
I’ve also known one or two conservatives through the church I was attending. I was a member of the Missions Team. At one of the meetings of the team, I wore a pair of earrings that were dangling peace signs. Before beginning the meeting, the Chairman turned and said, “There are a lot of good things going on in Iraq that we never hear about.” At first I couldn’t think why he was directing this comment to me and what had prompted it. Then I remembered the peace earrings. He was hearing a conversation that I wasn’t having. To give him the benefit of the peace that was symbolized, I said nothing.
I don’t argue much except with close friends except here at SDMB. The Sixties, Seventies, and Eighties were different.
In the Nashville area in general, I feel reasonably certain that we probably have all sorts of conservatives. I just don’t know all types.
Shodan, Starving Artist and I don’t have much of a meeting of the mind on politics. (I do miss that grand person who was William F. Buckley.) I read something that Shodan wrote once that told me more about his character than anything I’ve read that he’s posted since. With Starving Artist, there is more to him than he lets on. But why should my opinion of someone be determined only by his politics?
I was genuinely surprised that you got pissed at the use of flounce or flounced. It is a little like saying “She will turn on her heel.” I would feel free to use it in any of the forums here – not just the Pit. The over-reaction from you was not that you threw the f-bomb back at me for it, but that you actually did “go with sudden determination.” If you are going to be offended by my ordinary language so that you curse me and leave, how are we to reach a point where we can communicate?
If I wanted to be picky about language, I could be offended about your reference to my “neck of the woods” and your assumption that people who are conservative here are less moderate than you are.
And if I wanted to be picky about language, I could take exception to the idea that only Conservatives are crass enough to talk about politics, or that Democrats are never racist. We could play that game all day if we deliberately try to put the worst possible light on others’ words.
Well, I’m not sure each “type” has a label. Certainly here on the SDMB we see people who wouldn’t be able to go down a checklist of the Dem or Pub platforms and check off all the boxes.
Your last sentence here is exactly the reason for this thread. I don’t know why. For me, it’s not even the smallest consideration. As you said above, you can’t necessarily assume a person’s inner character based on it, anyway. Some Democrats are even racist! And some Republicans are happy to help the less fortunate. You’ll have to trust me on that.
Surely you understand that context is everything, Zoe. Something very negative was said to me. I lost interest in that thread, as my attention was directed towards how I wanted to respond to it. THAT was why I pretty much stopped posting the the thread, not anything you said. What you said was a REACTION to my leaving, and saying that I “flounced” was not the only thing you said. If I recall correctly, you also said that I was crying and my chin was trembling, none of which was true. All of that was a mis-characterization of my reaction, and that was what got you the f-bomb. If you’re going to make up lies about me, you can expect it again.
You could. But I’m pretty moderate…most conservatives everywhere are less moderate than I am…it’s not that wild of an assumption.
Why?
Because the posters are harsh or cruel? Unlikely, because, as many have noted, it’s just a message board.
Because the posts are boring, uninformed, and universally poorly spelled? I’ve become inured to that; I’d just move on.
Because the posters display a herd mentality and quickly circle the wagons against a new idea? Actually, whenever I see that, it does make me sad. People dragging a wonderful tool for communication, information, and entertainment down to the level of a particularly parochial school-yard.
But the run-of-the-mill smug and self-satisfied pigeon-holing of others with snide little comments that are much less clever or entertaining than the poster thinks? That only makes me sad here.
Don’t you remember when the level of discourse in GD was so good that even long-time members wouldn’t post there? The posts were reasoned and insightful, and so well-written.
Ur a fckin retarted. Teh definition of universally means all = bad speillng, & irregardless u shuld stop nitpcking throw away stuff just 2 b a dick.
Yeah! And you totally misspelled “injured”!
So what did you mean when you said the following:
And why would you think they would be less moderate than you? I think maybe I have asked you this before and you didn’t respond.
At any rate, I see virtually no difference in your use of “kind of conservative” and my use of “all sorts of conservatives” or the use of the word “type.” But I didn’t use the word* label*. You use labels. I use labels. They are a simplification and a convenience. They are also inadequate. That is the nature of language. What’s your point?
Look at the context. Read it again:
[quote]
Zoe: Most of the conservatives I know are through my club and went to Vanderbilt. Since Nashville is a liberal city, the subject of politics is generally avoided at social functions through the club.** But most of the people that I know there and elsewhere around here are Democrats and liberals.
In other words, since the club in a mixture of conservatives and liberals, the subject of politics is generally avoided at social functions. I think that is considered the polite thing to do whether you are Southern or Mid-Western. So is the topic of religion. Correct me if I’m wrong about the Mid-West.
Was there anything that you really wanted to work out between us so that we can get along or do you just want to try to find more to criticize in what I say? You can continue to do that easily by taking things out of context and seeing evil intent where there is none. Or you can put down your sword.
And thanks for your wishes for my health. This is my 12th day on antibiotics, I think. Monday was the first day I have felt human. The surgery was only moderately successful and my surgeon has been out of town since. Morale: Don’t have surgery when you have pneumonia.
I already said that most people who call themselves conservative and vote Republican are less moderate than me. I have gleaned that from my interactions with people and reading their posts on message boards such as this one. While I call myself a conservative, it’s mostly because I feel my viewpoint on fiscal policy puts me in that camp. I’m not much of social conservative at all. I also don’t strictly vote either party, but tend to switch around depending on the candidate and situation. Tennessee being a consistently red state, I took a leap of logic in assuming that most of the Republicans are more conservative and loyal to the Republican party than I. That is what I meant.
What was your point? You were the one who brought up “types” of Conservatives, not me.
OK, I read it again. The word “since” is still in there. “Since Nashville is a liberal city, the subject of politics is generally avoided at social functions through the club.” (Emphasis mine.) You statement implies that the liberalness is the reason that politics is not discussed, due to your use of the word “since.”
You did not say before that the club has a mixture of conservatives and liberals. If that is the context you are referring to, maybe you could explain to me how I might know that context from your statement?
Why should I want to work out anything between us? You certainly don’t seem motivated in that direction. You came into this thread, brought up being picky about language, and showed me an example of where you might take offense in what I had written, if you were so inclined. Since you surely were doing that with helpful and generous intent, I thought maybe I might do the same for you. It’s just two people helping each other.
That seems like good advice…I can’t imagine what your surgeon was thinking! 