Janet Albrechtsen (“Get ready for Leftist hysteria if Abbott wins the election”, The Australian, 28/8) asserts that film-makers tend to hold left-wing views because they “trade in emotion rather than reason”. We are supposed to deduce from this that left-wing views in general are hysterical, another example of the ancient fallacy which C.S. Lewis called “Bulverism”.
Be that as it may, there are other qualities that do correlate with left-wing views: intelligence is one, education is another; so it may be unwise for a conservative to pursue this line of reasoning too far.
However, it would be wrong to assume that just because someone has conservative opinions, they are ignorant or stupid. It is fairer and more rational to debate the views and values at stake, rather than the qualities of the individuals who hold them.