The “A Passionate Liberal” page was an attempt to begin a blog that I have since abandoned. I apologize if this has caused any confusion or consternation for you, and welcome your request to get to know me better.

If you stick to the classical definition of a “Liberal”, that is me; it precludes any ability to pigeonhole me [or you, by the way]. I personally choose the definition [linked here: http://www.wisdomquotes.com/cat_liberals.html advanced by Bertrand Russell:

“The essence of the Liberal outlook lies not in what opinions are held, but in how they are held: instead of being held dogmatically, they are held tentatively, and with a consciousness that new evidence may at any moment lead to their abandonment.”

As a matter of course, I have requested you as a friend on YouTube. From that, and from here, I would be more than pleased to engage you in whatever conversation you might care to carry on.

Nice to meet you, and I see that you’re a History Teacher in North Carolina. I’m glad to know that at least somebody who seems to understand civility is teaching history to young Americans!

cuL8r?

Stephen

While my assumption of neo-con philosophy from “seesixcm6″ was apparently in error [according to him], I stand by my original point: HotForWords.com is apolitical, as is it’s creator and hostess, Marina Orlova — at least as far as the content of her weblog/vlog posts are concerned. Her appearances on other media outlets are many and varied and exhibit NO political posturing — even on Bill O’Reilly [who certainly DOES posit the neo-con perspective].

BTW, one need not be a neo-con in order to be intolerant or bigoted. It helps, but it is by no means a prerequisite.

BTW2, “seesixcm6″, according to Merriam Webster’s online dictionary, “polemic” [http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/polemic] is defined thusly:

“polemic
2 entries found.

1. polemic
2. polemical

Main Entry:
po·lem·ic Listen to the pronunciation of polemic
Pronunciation:
pə-ˈle-mik
Function:
noun
Etymology:
French polémique, from Middle French, from polemique controversial, from Greek polemikos warlike, hostile, from polemos war; perhaps akin to Greek pelemizein to shake, Old English ealfelo baleful
Date:
1638

1 a: an aggressive attack on or refutation of the opinions or principles of another b: the art or practice of disputation or controversy —usually used in plural but singular or plural in construction2: an aggressive controversialist : disputant
— po·lem·i·cist Listen to the pronunciation of polemicist -ˈle-mÉ™-sist noun”

When I used the word “polemic”, I was referring to your previous quote:

“Your intelligence is probably insulted by inclusion on a list associated with Ariane Huffington, who ran an idiotic and stupid campaign for Governor in 2002. Huffington’s stunts included trying to horn in on a Schwarzenegger event, and knocking down the podium in her rush to appear. The idiotic look on Huffington’s face told the voters how dumb she was, then.”

In that context, I stand by that usage and suggest that if you are that upset about it that we take it up with Marina! She’s way brighter and all of us put together!!!

Finally, “Can’t we all just get along?”

Stephen Burnett