Flooding in Tennessee

i feel your pain...it is a very similar situation in the pittsburgh area. i haven't confirmed if i'm crazy or they're stupid, but i'm leaning to the later. as you pointed out, everyone is entitled to their own opinion. i just don't think vicious attacks on those with different views is quite necessary. i've been know to make my own asshole comment on occasion, but a very tame one in comparisson. the political, religious, and moral views of the majority of citizens(or at least those who choose to express them) are mostly neanderthalic. most of the time they have formed their oppinion long before the facts have been discovered. i find it very frustrationg not being able to discuss any topics of importance and have chosen the "head in sand" path as well.

Seeing as we are now in the 21st Century, I think that thinly veiled prejudice would accurately describe 19th Century civility, no?

I think in the 19th century they were actually pretty much out in the open with their prejudices. Maybe I could have chosen a better example for that one, but my point is that I still feel like I can disagree with someone's position without demonizing them. Maybe I'm just overly naive these days to think that when someone reads a story about a mom who neglected her two kids while she passed out in her own vomit that they might say, "Wow, I hope those kids are OK", instead of "Fuckin' [racial epithet here], always [gross generalization here]! We just need to [alarmist over reaction here] and then we'll be OK!"