You've got a point, though it may be a bit of a simplification. Personally I'd say the problem with politics, religion and other such topics is that they're mor

You've got a point, though it may be a bit of a simplification. Personally I'd say the problem with politics, religion and other such topics is that they're more a perfect storm of the following: 1. They're about topics you can't prove right/wrong with science (at least not for the most part), so there's never a consensus. 2. They're linked to their participants identities, meaning they're very uninterested in changing their opinion or listening to others they disagree with (since it comes across as a personal attack on their background). 3. People don't know if they're experts at these topics, but don't care and will argue about them anyway. 4. They're things everyone has an opinion about, informed or otherwise. 5. It's virtually impossible to tell who's an expert and who just likes to talk a lot, meaning discussions are filled with every kind of crank and extremist possible. 6. For the very few who actually are open to new ideas and perspectives, they're often easier swayed by emotional appeals than facts when discussing these topics. Hence the raging flame war that will inevitably ensue when one of these topics is discussed in almost any forum (internet or otherwise).