# Why does this board lean Democrat? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [April 24, 2013, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626 "2013-04-24T23:00:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/161 "2013-04-29T15:45:29Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > My “argument” is that you think Republicans are bullies and liars, and that you would like to spit in their eye. Which is what you said. I didn’t deny writing that. I asked you why you clipped off the front of my quote, where I disparaged Demoracts. And now I’ve asked you twice. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/162 "2013-04-29T15:54:32Z")
> [@Slithy\_Tove](#): > > I didn’t deny writing that. I asked you why you clipped off the front of my quote, where I disparaged Demoracts. > > And now I’ve asked you twice. You’ve already been answered. Why did you employ a racist stereotype to disparage me? Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/163 "2013-04-29T16:09:52Z")
> [@Slithy\_Tove](#): > > If you’re so cock-sure you have me down to cases, why did you have to cut off the front of my one already short sentence to support your argument? > > Or do you pay an illegal immigrant under the table to type your posts as well as clean your toilet? This is out of line for this forum. Let’s dial the outrage back and remember you’re not in the Pit. Furthermore, I’m moving this topic to Great Debates since it’s definitely evolved into that, seemingly. ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/164 "2013-04-29T16:13:27Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > You’ve already been answered. > > Why did you employ a racist stereotype to disparage me? > > Regards, > Shodan 1. No, you didn’t answer why you clipped my quote. You only quoted the anti-Republican part. And then you quoted it, and only it again; and again. Everyone who has read our exchange understand this. 2. How is hiring an illigal alien a “racist” stereotype? Hispanic, Black, Asian, White Americans all hire illegal immigrants. It’s an anti-conservative steroptype (and not an across-the-board one, since lower-middle-class Republican voters don’t hire illegals by and large; while wealthy and upper-middle-class Repubicans do. The GOP hasn’t figured out the equivalent of the Black vs White Southern Strategy on the issue yet.) You won’t come up with an answer that dispels everyone’s understanding that you clipped the Democrats from my quote to feed your Republican persecution complex, and then you call “racism” in a non-existant context for the same reason. Shodan, you have not addressed, only deflected. But, since we’re playing by “welcoming of Liberals” Fox News rules, I’ll let you cut off my mike, play my edited sound bite over and over, and let you win this thread (since you seem to lose all the others) ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/165 "2013-04-29T16:32:03Z")
I started coming here because of the tv show almost a decade ago, I have no idea what brought the rest of you and why liberals are better represented. I could posit a theory, but I’m capable of enough self reflection to see confirmation bias. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/166 "2013-04-29T16:35:19Z")
I’m sure you had something in mind when you said “Lean Democrat. Fuck them…”, but to me it’s nonsensical. Fuck whom? Fuck the Democrats, Fuck the leaners? Fuck the board for leaning Democrat? I didn’t think clipping that off altered your quote because it didn’t make much sense. That’s my 2 cents. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/167 "2013-04-29T16:48:11Z")
What he was saying was ‘never mind the Democrats - I don’t lean towards them. I just hate Republicans’. Because he thinks they are liars and bullies and so forth. He apparently also thinks that illegal immigrants are either dishonest or incompetent, and only good for cleaning toilets and lying. Which is unfortunate, but (as I mentioned) amusing in a way. [QUOTE=Slithy Tove] You won’t come up with an answer that dispels everyone’s understanding that you clipped the Democrats from my quote to feed your Republican persecution complex… [/QUOTE] I don’t need to. “Everyone” doesn’t think that. > [@](#): > > How is hiring an illigal alien a “racist” stereotype? It isn’t. Saying that, because a post is dishonest, it must have been posted by an illegal immigrant, is a racist stereotype. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/168 "2013-04-29T17:01:13Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Saying that, because a post is dishonest, it must have been posted by an illegal immigrant, is a racist stereotype. And which race is being stereotyped in this particular case? ---
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/169 "2013-04-29T17:11:19Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > What he was saying was ‘never mind the Democrats - I don’t lean towards them. I just hate Republicans’. Because he thinks they are liars and bullies and so forth. He apparently also thinks that illegal immigrants are either dishonest or incompetent, and only good for cleaning toilets and lying. > > Which is unfortunate, but (as I mentioned) amusing in a way.I don’t need to. “Everyone” doesn’t think that. > It isn’t. Saying that, because a post is dishonest, it must have been posted by an illegal immigrant, is a racist stereotype. > > Regards, > Shodan Pretty sure I’ve never before sided with Shodan against anyone about anything before, but… there wasn’t any meaningful misquoting or taking out of context as far as I can tell. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/170 "2013-04-29T18:13:28Z")
> [@Saraya](#): > > You said it, not him. Well, you have me dead-to-rights, no arguing with the intellectual honesty of the right-wing position. ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/171 "2013-04-29T18:22:18Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Oh, and I bet libertarians have the highest average IQ. 😃 Which would make their inability to come up with a cogent and workable definition of Libertarianism even more frustrating! 🙂 As for this larger discussion, it’s very tired. It inevitably rings of persecution complexes and hollow charges of bias. I will say this, though. It’s very important to recognize the differences between: 1. being a conservative 2. expressing conservative views 3. repeating conservative talking points 4. working tirelessly to advance a Republican political agenda that consistently has you engaging in partisan pedantic pettifoggery One would do well to try to step back and engage in enough self-reflection to distinguish whether one’s treatment here is a function of #1 or #4. Just as a fer-instance, let’s take an inherently non-political discussion about a judge taking a belt and whipping the shit out of an adolescent girl (who may have had developmental difficulties) because she violated her computer use privileges. If you note that the judge was a Republican, and you take the tack in the discussion of suggesting that these kids these days know how to subvert computer protection software and how to fuck with their system BIOS… …the hostility you experience as a result is not because you are a conservative. It’s because you’re trying to exculpate a grown man who violently whipped an adolescent girl due to the fact that he happened to be a Republican. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/172 "2013-04-29T18:40:07Z")
> [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](#): > > Which would make their inability to come up with a cogent and workable definition of Libertarianism even more frustrating! 🙂 > > As for this larger discussion, it’s very tired. It inevitably rings of persecution complexes and hollow charges of bias. I will say this, though. It’s very important to recognize the differences between: > > 1. being a conservative > 2. expressing conservative views > 3. repeating conservative talking points > 4. working tirelessly to advance a Republican political agenda that consistently has you engaging in partisan pedantic pettifoggery > > One would do well to try to step back and engage in enough self-reflection to distinguish whether one’s treatment here is a function of #1 or #4. > > Just as a fer-instance, let’s take an inherently non-political discussion about a judge taking a belt and whipping the shit out of an adolescent girl (who may have had developmental difficulties) because she violated her computer use privileges. > > If you note that the judge was a Republican, and you take the tack in the discussion of suggesting that these kids these days know how to subvert computer protection software and how to fuck with their system BIOS… > > …the hostility you experience as a result is not because you are a conservative. > > It’s because you’re trying to exculpate a grown man who violently whipped an adolescent girl due to the fact that he happened to be a Republican. Is that an actual example of what some 'doper did, or is it purely hypothetical? You don’t have to link to the discussion, just curious if you made it up to make a point or if it’s based on a real discussion. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/173 "2013-04-29T18:56:02Z")
Ignorance is present in both sides of the political debate in America, but it is more \*necessary \*on the Republican side. Global warming, creationism, conspiracy theories, magical economic thinking, codifying religious views into law are some examples I can think of off the top of my head. If ignorance is more central to the right, a board that fights it will over-represent the left. Maybe in 20 years it will flip, but right now, much of rightward thought is drivel. ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/174 "2013-04-29T19:03:30Z")
> [@XT](#): > > Is that an actual example of what some 'doper did, or is it purely hypothetical? You don’t have to link to the discussion, just curious if you made it up to make a point or if it’s based on a real discussion. Let me say that my point was more about the larger issue that we develop reputations here, and while one may perceive their treatment here as harsh and unfair and based solely on being a member of an “outgroup,” it may alternately be that people are instead really just sick of your shit. So, I’d rather not rehash the particular incident, but yes, that was a real example. Of course, it’s likely that that particular person might differ as to whether they were motivated by the political orientation of the judge in that circumstance or not, but over time you come to see where people invest their energies in debates and where they don’t. I have no doubt that some people roll their eyes when they see a post from me. I don’t assume that they are antagonistic towards me because of any political affiliation I have, though. ETA: I’m reminded of a guy I knew who had a really unpleasant disposition and off-putting personality. He was bothered by the fact that people really didn’t take to him. As a result, he started wearing a hat around that said “Fuck You” on it. This allowed him to blame the hat for people’s negative reaction to him. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/175 "2013-04-29T19:04:45Z")
> [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](#): > > Let me say that my point was more about the larger issue that we develop reputations here, and while one may perceive their treatment here as harsh and unfair and based solely on being a member of an “outgroup,” it may alternately be that people are instead really just sick of your shit. > > So, I’d rather not rehash the particular incident, but yes, that was a real example. Of course, it’s likely that that particular person might differ as to whether they were motivated by the political orientation of the judge in that circumstance or not, but over time you come to see where people invest their energies in debates and where they don’t. > > I have no doubt that some people roll their eyes when they see a post from me. I don’t assume that they are antagonistic towards me because of any political affiliation I have, though. Ok, thanks…was just curious. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/176 "2013-04-29T19:24:59Z")
I’m pretty conservative in some regards and very liberal in others. I don’t discuss my conservative views here. It isn’t worthwhile. It’s still a great board, though and I like it here. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/177 "2013-04-29T19:30:50Z")
> [@Slypork](#): > > Just a quick observation. I did a very dirty search of SDMB looking for the words “democrat” or “republican” in the title for the past 6 months. There was no way in hell I was going to search on posts. The servers would have crashed. I was looking for titles that were either explicitly negative towards the party in question or pointed towards a negative opinion. These were titles where you looked at them and could tell immediately that the OP was casting the group in question in a disparaging light. I excluded titles that appeared to be generic, benign questions. My results: > > Democrat in title > > 1. [Fucking Stupid Democrat Fraudulent Voters](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=683078&highlight=Democrat) > > Republican in title > 2. [Stupid Republican idea of the day](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=511831&highlight=Republican) > 3. [Rand Paul: Great White Hunter tries to educate students at Howard U. about Republican Party](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=687985&highlight=Republican) > 4. [Obama should target Republican districts with the consequences of the sequester](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=682419&highlight=Republican) > 5. [Is Republican noise about Susan Rice just a ploy to get Scott Brown back into the Senate?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=673544&highlight=Republican) > 6. [Being a gay Republican in 2013 - How can they be part of a party that despises them?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=681177&highlight=Republican) > 7. [NOW will the Republican Party finally deal with Rush Limbaugh?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=673086&highlight=Republican) > 8. [Wichita, Kansas, the Kansas State Republican Party and FLAMING IDIOCY`](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=671570&highlight=Republican) > > I also did a title search on liberal vs conservative for the past 6 months: > > Liberal > > 1. [Stupid liberal idea of the day](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=605448&highlight=liberal) > 2. [Liberal Tax Myths](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=683543&highlight=liberal) > 3. [CBS pre-game show still doing their Liberal whining about not enough minoirty coaches being hired](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=679658&highlight=liberal) > 4. [When did CNN become so liberal?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=679219&highlight=liberal) > 5. [Resolved - Liberal Men are Douchebag Weeinies](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=679125&highlight=liberal) > > Conservative > > 1. [Give Me an Example of Conservative Political Fiction](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=678092&highlight=conservative) > 2. [Bad tipping AND conservative nonsense? Straight Dopers, assemble!](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=678135&highlight=conservative) > 3. [“Liberty Movement” (Ron Paul followers) asserts that it’s in the conservative driver’s seat](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=675009&highlight=conservative) > 4. [Latest conservative grievance - polls “oversample” Democrats](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=666493&highlight=conservative) > 5. [The Conflict between Conservative “Facts” and Reality](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=671544&highlight=conservative) > 6. [Were conservative media outlets trying to make it sound like Romney was winning the popular vote](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=672000&highlight=conservative) > 7. [“Romney not conservative enough”](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=671552&highlight=conservative) > > You can run your own searches to check the results. Maybe you’ll think I excluded ones from this list. > > In any case, take this dirty sampling with a grain of salt and interpret as you will. **I see a serious left/liberal/Demorat leaning here that shows a disdain for right/conservative/Republicans**. It’s pretty sad that people who take great pride in their tolerance and acceptance can be so hate-filled. There also appears to be a tendency on this board to view the people on the right, including board members, as narrow-minded, intolerant, ignorant and bigoted. Well, pot, the kettle has something to say to you. (Bolding mine.) You look at those titles and see that? Really? I count 5 of those titles that are clearly disdainful to Democrats and liberals as groups. And only 3 that are clearly disdainful to Republicans and conservatives as groups. Given that the board is more heavily populated by those with democratic and liberal leanings (per the premise of the op) that ratio should be reversed at least. If anything you have proven the exact opposite. Going by what you have collected Democratic and liberal posters are significantly less likely to post thread titles that disparage Republicans and conservatives as a group than are Republican and conservative posters here. In fact of threads that have “liberal” or “Democrat” in their titles **83%** are clearly disdainful of the group. Of those with “conservative” or “Republican” in the title **only 20%** are clearly disdainful of the group. (That gives credit for being disdainful of a specific state Republican party organization. A stretch.) Most are critical of an individual (e.g. Rand Paul, or Rush) or raising points of debate without disdain. (Should Obama target GOP districts, what is the motivation regarding going after Susan Rice, etc.) So based on your collected data I was wrong: conservative posters here are more likely to be disdainful of liberals and Democrats as groups than the other way around; it is not as equal as I had thought it would be. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/178 "2013-04-29T19:36:13Z")
> [@Darth\_Panda](#): > > I’m pretty conservative in some regards and very liberal in others. > > I don’t discuss my conservative views here. It isn’t worthwhile. > > It’s still a great board, though and I like it here. It’s a good way to test your views out, since someone on this board is bound to pick it apart and you can see what, if any holes there are in it. That’s the main reason I love engaging in debate here wrt politics, as it challenges my preconceptions and views and sometimes gives me insights into how others think, especially on the left. I think that the lefties on this board (the saner ones) have some very interesting views and are highly intelligent, so I always get a lot out of the discussions even when I don’t agree with the folks I’m discussing things with. The down side is that there are a lot of knee jerk lefties here who just lash out at anything they think is conservative. I can remember being repeatedly attacked during the Bush years with assumptions that because I’m a ‘conservative’ (their label, not mine) I MUST agree in lock step with everything Bush ever said, despite the fact I loathed the man and didn’t vote for him. It was a knee jerk strawman attack that was repeatedly used as if this would simply win the debate. Thankfully, the really loony lefties are few in number, and generally fall into the Usual Suspects categories. The unfortunate thing is that they aren’t often stepped on to the same degree as the loony righties are here, since the fit in better with the overall corporate culture of this board. I generally think that most of the more sane lefties here just roll their eyes or ignore the lunatics in their midst on this board, but they rarely go out of their way to step on them, while the pile on factor is definitely visible when it’s a righty saying loony stuff. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/179 "2013-04-29T19:38:30Z")
> [@XT](#): > > Is that an actual example of what some 'doper did, or is it purely hypothetical? You don’t have to link to the discussion, just curious if you made it up to make a point or if it’s based on a real discussion. In [the thread on that topic](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=629940&highlight=republican+conservative), the word “conservative” occurs solely in association with a single poster, **OMG A Black Conservative**. Its first appearance is in post #279. The word “Republican” appears only once, also in dialog with that poster (link with highlighting for your convenience). ---
**Author:** ![Slypork](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc29f/32.png) [@Slypork](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slypork)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626/180 "2013-04-29T19:41:36Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > Ignorance is present in both sides of the political debate in America, but \*\*it is more \*necessary \*on the Republican side. \*\* > > Global warming, creationism, conspiracy theories, magical economic thinking, codifying religious views into law are some examples I can think of off the top of my head. > > If ignorance is more central to the right, a board that fights it will over-represent the left. Maybe in 20 years it will flip, but right now, **much of rightward thought is drivel.** (bolding mine)…and this is why conservatives/Republicans don’t feel welcome here. For as closed-minded as some on the right can be there are just as many on the left. So much of the “debate” that occurs here is on par with the old SNL “Point/Counterpoint”. I’m just waiting for the “Jane, you ignorant slut” and “Dan, you pompous ass.” Substitute the names for your favorite Dopers. > [@](#): > > **Dan Aykroyd** : Tonight on “Point/Counterpoint”, Jane and I will argue Federal Aid for Abortions. Jane will take the Point for Federal Aid, and I will take the Counterpoint against. Jane? > **Jane Curtin** : Safe abortions have **always** been available to the rich, Dan. You simply want to deny them to the poor, and if you succeed, poor woman will be forced to get them anyway. They’ll be **forced** into the alleys with hangers, plungers and vacuum cleaners, risking death or mutilation. But you’d **like** that, wouldn’t you, Dan, you sadistic, elitist, sexist, racist, anti-humanist \*\*pig! \*\* > > **Dan Aykroyd** : Jane, you ignorant, misguided slut! Once again, you missed the point entirely. [enraged] Why should I pay hard-earned dollars so welfare tarts can have **sex** anytime they want, without regards to consequences? Haven’t these bimbos heard of abstinence? I, myself, haven’t had sex for two years - and I’m rich! Why should I foot the bill for killing unborn infants, anyway? I’ll pay for something practical like sterilization - but abortions? \*\*Never! \*\* With **one** exception - if I had been around when your mother was having you, not only would I have paid for the abortion, but I would have performed it myself! Boy, I could swear I’ve seen this interaction on here a time or two. I remember doing debates in Speech Team in high school. You debated on facts, figures, statistics\* and had sources to back up your side. On this board a conservative is already hobbled before he gets out of gate because his opponent won’t even begin to entertain the concept that maybe, just maybe, his opponent might have a relevant point to make. \*Yes, I know there are ”lies, damn lies and statistics” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-this-board-lean-democrat/656626.md?page=10)