roachboy

for what it's worth--from a very different political viewpoint than yours--i have found my interest starting to wane.

one thing that seems to be driving it is the attitude that you outline above--that most conservatives (NOT all) have been, are and in all probability will remain unwilling to participate in actual argument.

the tactic seems to work as follows:
1.
refuse to present a coherent argument
or
repeat the dominant line from the administration about an issue as if that repetition was adequate

[[it should be obvious that those outside this frame of reference are suspicious enough of the administration in general--and its media strategies in particular--that starting with this will be taken as refusing to argue anything.

i imagine that folk who work from the other side see things otherwise
but they must be aware of this kind of problem because they have been told about it over and over---so that refusing to take it into consideration when posting amounts to refusing to debate at all.

one thing for sure, however--this presents a real barrier to effective debate, to communication at all, frankly.

i am also aware that i see this from a particular viewpoint. no Message bourne down from the Mountain here--just an attempt to work this out]]

2.

attempt to trivialize responses from others to that by calling it "bashing" or "bush hating"
which has the effect in argument what the category "terrorist" does in politics--cutting off any consideration of what might really be at issue, and reducing opposition to an expression of some kind of emotional dysfunction.

3.

if this pattern repeats often enough, you see a shift into what you do above, kma: a story of martyrdom

i find my patience is running out with it in the microcosm that is this board.
because it all seems self-confirming:

attempts (conscious or not) to short-circuit debate from one side pushes those outside into really repetitive patterns of counterargument--because nothing ever moves.

i do not know the extent to which this is a symptom of a wider problem.
but i do know that it has been going on here with increasing frequency.
and it is tedious.
it is really really tedious.

__________________
a gramophone its corrugated trumpet silver handle
spinning dog. such faithfulness it hear

it make you sick.

-kamau brathwaite