No one changes anyone else's mind around here, and that's okay.

I'm certainly not trying to! I'm trying to understand the people who have adopted this ideology, and why they have. I found a lot of the generalizations made to go much too far and wanted to see how those making them would defend their beliefs in the face of relationships that poke a lot of holes - such that I might better understand.

And you may even empathize (though not necessarily agree with) repugnant points of view.

Well I certainly understand that it can be difficult to have struggles finding a good partner. I also understand that it sucks to be cheated on. I donly get that, and I know that some people get very dismissive and hateful when they have been wronged, some like to generalize future experiences from past ones and so on. I can certainly see how someone might get to the point that they use this, aptly described, repugnant language. But it definitely does not justify using it, nor excuse it. In my opinion. I've never had trouble feeling compassion for others. I guess it is one of the very good things I pulled from being raised in a strictly Catholic household among the bad. In fact I would say it is hard for me not to put the ones I care about before myself because if this. I have never hated another person. I don't even know how I could, but I sure do hate ideas.

I hate when people denigrate and disrespect others. I hate that some people can believe themselves superior to others, especially for uncontrolled physical traits. I hate that people don't take the time to understand others on an individual level. I hate that people are disrespectful to one a other. So while I do understand many of the people who say these things have been wronged, and I absolutely do feel and share their pain at times, I hate the things it makes them think and say.

The empathy factor is key. Instead of trying to fight against an idea (say the "woman are teenagers" idea), I climb inside that idea for while. I really, really try to understand the why and how of an idea, where it came from and, more importantly, what use does it serve to its believer. Many of the shocking ideas here are a type of emotional armor. Once you feel that mindset, you will be better able to empathize. Once you have empathy, you can feel compassion for the person, in spite of the weird and repugnant ideas. Despite all the big Latin words (makes us feel fancy--solipsism, heuristic*) and the analytical speech, people here, especially RP folk, are more receptive to compassion rather than cold argumentation. Why? Because an argument does not invite deep introspection or vulnerability. No one wins an argument. (Dale Carnegie pro-life tip) A logical argument invites a challenge--a counterargument. At the end of the day, you have just given "your opponent" an opportunity to reflect on "why he is right," and he walks away feeling more right than before. And you walk away feeling more right than before. I think this is why people argue. They want opportunities to build their faith in the beliefs, whether it's about sports, religion, politics, etc. Their goal isn't to analyze and synthesize another's point of view and to integrate that into their current position but to strengthen their beliefs in their own right-ness. (So if your goal is to proselytize, you would do well to avoid argumentation as the means.) This place is addictive. I just did a drive-by in the summer after stumbling on TRP. Now look at me. This is like the land of the lotus eaters.