can there ever be a clean conversation concerning religion or politics why does it always get ugly?

Question

everyone seems to blow a gasket when discussing anything religious or politics. can there ever be a clean convo? why not?

Answer 1

Well, the easy answer to this is yes. The easiest way to have a clean friendly conversation about either religion or politics is to discuss these subjects with people who follow your same beliefs.

The main reason that it typically gets ugly is that these are very touchy subjects to a lot of people.

In politics, people have a firm belief that one person or another is the right person to resolve their issues, the issues that they feel strongly about.

The same is true with religion.

The problem arises when you question their beliefs in these areas because in essence, to them, you are questioning their core values. Oftentimes these two subjects are subjects that are ingrained into a persons head from birth because their parents are teaching them (by example and sometimes outright) about their politics and their religion.

Personally, no problem with either.

Love as always,

Sebastian

Answer 2

Well, of course there can be. However, this is a 'forum' where a question is asked and several people may reply. That does not constitute a discussion. The other thing is that many questions here are asked in order to be divisive and to challenge. That inspires the wrong kind of answer for any sensible discussion to take place.

So I would say that Yahoo Answers is the wrong place to try to discuss religion or politics, though it is a place, perhaps where a discussion might be initiated by, first, a person asking for information and receiving it and, second, choosing to discuss further with one or more of the answerers privately by email, IM or whatever other communication method is available.

"Just because your voice reaches halfway around the world doesn't mean you are wiser than when it reached only to the end of the bar." - Edward R. Murrow (today's quote from Google)

Answer 3

Yeah, there can be clean conversations about politics and religion. I'm going to university right now and studying philosophy and political science, and I spend most of my day having clean, civilized conversations about the most important issues in religion and politics. But YA isn't really structured to enable serious conversation and debate. You give an answer and no one has to know who you are. You can sign up under an anonymous account and you have no responsibility for the things you say to people. That's why everyone here is so quick on the trigger. They have nothing to lose for doing so.

Answer 4

In the old days people always expressed the importance of never discussing religion or politics.
There is a point, it is PASSION< about our personal beliefs and the inability to persuade others to see things our way. You may discover something about someone that you thought you knew that is very unappealing. If people could debate politics without passion, then we would be screwed. Religion is as personal as what you eat, it is no body's business what you believe or whom you pray to, unless it can really hurt others. We are (I am ) better off not discussing the two topics because I have passion and rage and I wind up feeling that other people are morons, or have no moral fiber.
Get a book on Arguments and Sources, or Topics of Debates and start these discussions on a slightly mellower note. Do you think Ted Kennedy was guilty at Chappaquidik? What was Spiro Agnew's middle name"
Who was Spiro Agnew? Who cares who Spiro Agnew Was?

All I care to discuss about religion is how religious leader justify killing. Boy, that one really p--ses me off!

Answer 5

To answer your second question: Because people are way too emotionally invested in their beliefs on such subjects, they identify their beliefs as part of themselves so any questioning or inquiry is seen as a threat.

To answer your first question: Yes, there can.

As a general aside: However, I am a firm beilever in the adage that in general polite company the two subjects never to be discussed are religion and politics. Save them for forums created expressly for such discussion. You'll get a much better response. Not a perfect response, not a 100% open and honest response, just a relatively better one.

Answer 6

This question has a common theme with another question I just asked a day ago. Basically most of the people here or anywhere for that matter are either stupid, bigoted/intolerant and or plain mindless. They love to impose their views on others but they never have anything intelligent to say to expound or even defend their views. And when they are countered by people who dont share their views or hate their guts...then being stupid they will respond in kind. I guess we are all guilty of this every now and then...though some people love to do this more than others.

Answer 7

Only when two people agree on everything do they remain friendly. It's really not worth your time to discuss politics with people who already agree with you though. Discourse is important. Having a friendly debate is not the same as fighting over an issue though. Many people are incapable of intelligent debate, so they tend to devolve into purely emotional creatures, and at that point, the conversation is lost and pointless.

Answer 8

Because in these particular areas people hold their strongest opinions. Especially with religion, which is the single most important thing to most people, and they take it as an insult if people don't agree with them. Also, in the case of Christians, they believe anyone who disagrees with them is doomed to suffer for eternity, so they really have the best of intentions when they try to convert you.
I have had clean conversations with people regarding religion and politics, but they have to be open-minded people who are willing to hear out different points of view. I have also had conversations on religion that have ended in tears, so I guess it just depends on who you're dealing with and how much their opinions conflict.

Answer 9

Nope. Religion is a topic without logic, so one side will always start to use "faith" as an argument. You can't really argue faith.

Politics is as dirty as politicians are - it's all about power. The days when people ran for the good of others - long gone (if they ever existed).

Answer 10

We should not get into heated arguments about things that are tied to our value systems, as then we seem to defend them when they are tested...its almost like being personally attacked when something that is a part of you i criticised and the criticism is against what you believe.
You can tell me my hair looks awful, or I am fat, and I don't really care that much...but tell me my god is unfair, or that the people did not think when they voted, and I am up in arms defending my belief...and will continue to do it whilst you in turn defend yours...and if we differ...we have an argument