Perhaps one reason why those in college (both professors and students) are more liberal is that most liberal views require thought and the conservative position is more intuitive.
Therefore, those who are well-educated tend to be more liberal. (especially so when controlled for income)
Not saying this is true for everyone - just a generalization.
Actually, I think that conservative views are more counterintuitive than liberal views, and require more thought and understanding of the overall world to arrive at. Liberal views tend to sound good in theory, but are generally a disaster when put into practice.
Our policy toward poverty is a perfect example of this. The more we have spent on anti-poverty programs, the worse off the poor have become relative to the overall population.
Why? Well it seems that the programs we have instituted have rewarded and encouraged the type of behavior that leads to poverty. It is not as simple as saying that giving money to people makes them less poor. The fact is that the counterintuitive position is more correct - that giving money to people who are doing little to help themselves makes them more poor, because it confirms in their minds the correctness of the behavior that has caused them to be poor in the first place.
Greater education does not equal greater intelligence. Common sense cannot be taught, and many of our most highly educated people lack common sense.
