when someone doesn't take the
default politically correct rhetorical position of their own stance in discussing a political issue. It leads to a false perception of cognitive dissonance by their audience, when in fact the person is abandoning rhetoric and examining the issue without rhetorical
bias. It leads to an ally of a cause to be seen as the enemy for not falling in
line with automatically assumed rhetorical positions.
When Bob argued the following, "I am a full supporter of gender equality. However, the SCUM Manifesto doesn't help the
feminist cause. Many feminists become just as bad as chauvinists, when their responses to sexism become just as polemic," he was seen as criticizing feminism, creating rhetorical dissonance. Another example is the following: "Gay rights are very important, and they should be equal. That being said, the APA has established that orientation changes over a lifetime. The
reality is that some
people can and do choose to be gay, not that there's anything wrong with that."