Mxsmanic,

I'm opinionated, but I'm polite,


No, you're not. Quite the opposite, in fact. Being opinionated about
subjects you know nothing or very little about is not polite. It is an
insult to the people you are trying to discuss with when those people
obviously know perfectly well what they are talking about. It's also
illogical and plain dumb, if I may say so. Being aware of one's limits
of knowledge and acting accordingly in discussions - that's polite. Oh,
and should you think of using the good old excuse of "All I'm being is
open-minded and sceptic (sp?)" - that can be done in a polite and
sensible manner, too. You don't.

And this not-so-subtle difference you refuse to understand is the key
to all the problems you have in human interaction (here). Thanks for
bringing it up so succinctly.

--
Thomas Borchert (EDDH)