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Who You Callin' Hitler?

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I try hard to stay out of politics on-line, mostly because I understand that no one changes someone else's beliefs by simply saying, "You're wrong. Here's the right way to look at it." Instead I'll do a history lesson. Adolf Hitler came to power and did what he did by convincing his people that it wasn't their fault things were bad in Germany. They were good people, he said. In fact, they were the best people on the face of the earth. They owed their nation whole-hearted love and allegiance, and there could be no questioning of the Fatherland. They had a proud heritage, and it deserved respect. What was wrong, Hitler said, was outsiders. People who didn't think, look, or act like "real" Germans. Something had to be done about these people, and we know now what that something was. I had a really cool prof at U of M many years ago, Dr. Westie, who explained two terms that get in the way of our view of the world. Egocentrism is the feel

You Know What They Say about Opinions

Here's the G-rated version: "Opinions are like noses. Everybody has one." America is a country that has long valued the right of each individual to have an opinion, and that's good. The problem comes when opinions are all a person has. Here's my take on the subject. *A person's opinions should be based on evidence, and that evidence must be real. It's difficult--sometimes really difficult--to look at the evidence, read or listen across a range of information, and make a conscious decision as to what you think about a subject. It's often easier to take the word of someone you think is smart or knowledgeable or well-read on the topic. The problem is that his/her opinion might be just as misinformed or slanted as anyone else's. If all it took to be right is brains or education, there wouldn't be so much disagreement in the highest levels of government. As a debater in high school and college, I learned that it's essential to look at both sid