And you are making an ass of yourself.

Tom, I don't have any psychological need to "prove" you are mistaken. Even if I did, there is no way I could do so. Political and philosophical opinions are just that, opinions. All our areas of disagreement are about issues where there is no proof and where there can be no proof. I cannot demonstrate scientifically your political ideas are wrong, I can only declare them as inhumane, distasteful and repugnant.

The purpose of political and philosophical debate is not to get anyone to change their mind, it is to persuade those who haven't made up their minds yet. The very fact you insist on making this some kind of a contest tells me your motives are more psychological than anything else. You need the validation of victory, just like a preacher needs to save souls. You set up a game I feel foolish playing and you comfort yourself by my refusal to do so. Fine, if that makes you feel better. I will be the first to admit there is no way I can convince you how truly and fundamentally mistaken you are. I just feel some responsibility to make sure no one else falls for your dogma.

Read the essay I wrote on Off-Topic, and my comments to Jody about it. Maybe that can give you some insight into how I think. And if you can't agree with that, that's cool too. I can't argue politics with you any more than I can reason with a Reincarnationist, a Zoroastrian, or a Rosicrucian. There is no way for me to "prove" they are wrong either. And I feel absolutely no need to do so.

To put it as kindly as possible, these questions cannot be settled by reason and debate. You seem to have faith on your side, but I don't. You know us Liberals, we're just not as convinced of our correctness as Conservatives are of theirs.