tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4903345229585403570.post3905340193562066044..comments2022-11-18T08:45:35.030-05:00Comments on My Life in Exile de Facto: The Palin FactorMJBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16478905132189121410noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4903345229585403570.post-24283349867663759442011-10-11T11:16:37.816-04:002011-10-11T11:16:37.816-04:00Well said, Beth! :)Well said, Beth! :)MJBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16478905132189121410noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4903345229585403570.post-89192673866157587202011-09-20T13:03:26.613-04:002011-09-20T13:03:26.613-04:00MJB, My take-away from the Palin and Hunting Fact...MJB, My take-away from the Palin and Hunting Factor posts is that it is just impossible and downright silly to lump a nation into one category (be it "uninformed" or "violent", etc.). Leno did the Man on the Street interviews and surely only broadcasted the goofy answers. Likewise, a one-person survey should not inform one's opinion of a nation as a whole. There are brainiacs and goofballs, peaceniks and warmongers in each nation, state, city, even family. So what do you do when someone spouts off a ridiculous generalization based on a solitary observation? It's likely you both could volley anecdotal evidence all night long, so that won't get you anywhere. You cannot use logic to reason with her any more effectively than you could a foreign language. You could try lecturing on the evils of stereotyping. You could try pointing out that her research is flawed. Or, perhaps more successfully, resorting to "yo mama" jokes. Or, in the end, perhaps your conflict-adverse spouse had a decent response after all.Bethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11300370765812261499noreply@blogger.com