In article MEpvb.267465$Fm2.280789@attbi_s04, Jay Honeck wrote:

I think it was the utter "out of left field" nature of these guys that
caught us both off guard. We were feeling really good about ourselves, and
the day, and the flight, and all the sudden *wham!* -- we found ourselves
knee-deep in a religious debate neither of us expected.

I have a description of this effect. You're talking to someone and holding a
seemingly-meaningful conversation, and suddenly they start quacking like
a duck. They clearly still *think* you're having a conversation, but you're
not.... This seems to manifest itself mostly in the realm of religion, but
sometimes you see the effect with conspiracy theory people too.

Mike Beede