Winning over Republicans with the Seven Deadly Sins

[gulliver]

An easy trick to remember when trying to persuade Republicans (who may also hide under the name "conservatives&quot of anything is to pepper your argument with appeals to the Seven Deadly Sins: wrath, greed, laziness, pride, lust, gluttony, and envy. Try it. It's fun.

Here is an example. Let's say you want to turn a Republican against mountaintop mining. And let's say you personally care about natural beauty, animal and fish habitat, and the health of residents who live along the rivers and streams near the mountaintops.

If you try to talk about those things directly with the Republican, you will fail. They have a completely different view of the mountaintops, fish, and people. The mountaintops have money under them. There are fish everywhere, so who cares about the fish near the mountaintops. And the people are people they don't know. Case closed. Blow up the mountain.

So instead, base your argument on sin.

(Greed and Envy) If we blow up that mountaintop, it will hurt our tourism. Other places nearby will get more of our rightful tourism dollars than they already are. (Envy) And you can just bet that all the money will end up in the pockets of bunch of fat cats in their mansions.

(Pride) We are better than that. We don't need that pittance of mining business like that other place or state we always tell jokes about. (Greed, Sloth/Laziness, and Anger) That mining company thinks it can take our resources and leave a mess for us to clean up later with our tax money. They've got another think coming.

(Lust) Besides, that area is a great place for parking. The view sets the perfect mood. (Gluttony) And I don't care if there are other places to park. You can't have too many.

[Flashmann]

1. Winning over Republicans with the Seven Deadly Sins

Sounds like a workable notion,with the more clever of those of the wrongwing mindset...Having to rely on the majority of those of that political persuasion being able to follow a path of logic and reason,to tap into their base instincts,seems futile.....

The ones,of that nature,that I know personally,lack the attention span and focus to venture very far down the logic path.....

[Cirque du So-What]

2. Probably won't work with evangelical fundies

for whom the Seven Deadly Sins are merely non-Biblical 'superstitions of Popery.'

[CJCRANE]

3. I think the point of the OP

is that they don't know you're appealing to the Seven Deadly Sins.

Fundies commit them on a regular basis without being aware of it..