If you are engaging me in a debate on a topic, do not attempt to counter my opinions with information from a highly partisan or highly ideological organization.

I don’t trust Amnesty International to be fully forthcoming on the positive aspects of incarceration and limits on prisoners’ rights. I am not going to get my facts on birth control risks and societal impact of contraception from the Roman Catholic Church. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PeTA) is not going to give me an honest, objective opinion on whether or not fish suffer when we catch them and release them. I don’t get my facts about the value of psychology and mental health medications from the Scientologists. Etcetera.

And, to be more specific to my most recent experience today, do not point me to the NCPA (www.ncpa.org), a conservative/libertarian think tank, for “facts” about global warming (and the “fact” that we have no part in causing it) when I point out that we should be concerned about our human impact on climate change, regardless of whether or not global warming really exists and whether or not humans are fully responsible for it.

Thank you for your cooperation.