April 15, 2004:
At a party once I mentioned being an antiwar activist. Youngish woman, professional, early thirties, rolled her eyes and said with scorn, "Oh, I get it, you're one of those people who trash SUVs." I think she was thinking of environmental radicals and was simply confused.
But there's the effectiveness of right-wing political narratives for you. Without the intervention of conscious thinking her mind followed a simple associative path which had been carved for it without her explicit knowledge: activist equals SUV-trasher. No need for further analysis.
Tactlessly, after blinking at her blankly for a moment, I said, "That's the stupidest thing I've heard in weeks." I don't think it helped.