Rainier.

says >>" we are all usually very good looking ... and if men - do not have microscopic wangers ..."

I'll just bet you insisted on doing a check on all those blokes yourself, just for eucational purposes right?

Can't say I think much of the direction this thread has taken. If people can't put arguments without recourse to insults, then their opinions are of little worth.

What makes liberal democracy function is that it is able to tolerate dissent. Trotskyites (if they obey the law) should have little to fear, even if they aim to undermine the state. Likewise they represent little threat to a healthy democracy, as most people are able to see them as the nutters they are.

A true democracy should be strong enough to withstand sedition. Do we really need laws against sedition?

Fractelle,
Re the study you mentioned , I heard a grab about it on the radio , Was amused by the conclusions , Let's face it , loony controll group = mild reaction , conservative control group = strong reaction . What does this really tell us ? Conservatives are far more switched on . Only a lefty would call a failure success .

Another for Col's list ; Natural selection .

PaulL my previous post was delivered in a glib fashion as a contrast to Col's "leftie swill" post.

But I will take you up on your comment "Economic liberalism is not conservative by any means. In fact is is anti-conservative."

In Australia the current mentality of economic liberalism is representative of the Conservative. That is representing the status quo or the norm - what is accepted thinking. The trend towards economic liberalism started in the 80s and has gathered ground. How long does a trend need to be entrenched before it is considered traditional thinking.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative

PaulL, if insult is the best weapon you can muster to put forth your argument then you really must be standing on some shaky ground.

Fascinating that Pauly accuses me elsewhere of being childish - a bit of projection?

His efforts at redefining words and concepts to suit his wingnut ideas remind me of Humpty Dumpty in "Through the Looking Glass":

<< `When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, `it means just what I choose it to mean -- neither more nor less.' >>

Sounds familiar, no?

A bit of comic relief to lighten
things up:

A conservative found a magic genie's lamp
and rubbed it.
The genie said: "I will grant you one wish."
The conservative said,
"I wish I were smarter."
So the genie made him smarter.
The next day the conservative became a socialist.