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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: jcky who wrote (63868)	12/31/2002 1:21:05 PM
From: carranza2	Respond to of 281500

Attacking the character of, rather than the substance of, dissent seems to be a disturbing trend which has gained influence in both the political and academic arenas recently. I don't know if we are just living in a less kind and gentle world or whether this mentality is representative of the lunatic fringe. I gather the moral absolutists would have something to say on this matter. Not just dissenters (whatever that term means, the implication being that they are nice, downtrodden, and somehow more morally valuable than the majority) but anyone with whom you disagree. The ad hominem mode of discourse is called demonization. A good example of it is calling Republicans "reactionaries." Demonization is the last refuge of scoundrels. The Nazis were experts at it.