Talking about politics

Of all the taboo subjects, politics is probably the one most likely to lead to an argument. Your political beliefs say a lot about your personal values, and political discussions can quickly get heated. The office is probably not the best place to discuss politics, precisely because despite your beliefs, you still need to work with the colleagues you might fundamentally disagree with. If politics comes up in discussion, here are some things you can say to avoid getting involved:

I'm afraid I don't really have any opinion on this.
I don't really know the background.
I haven't been following the story, I'm afraid.
I'd rather not discuss this, if you don't mind.

If you do end up getting involved in a political discussion, limiting your participation to five minutes is a good idea. Five minutes is long enough for you to share your opinion and show interest in other people's ideas. Find a way to gracefully leave the conversation:

Interesting, but I need to get back to work.
I think we'll have to agree to disagree. (= We can only agree on one thing, which is that we disagree with each other!)
I'm afraid I'm going to have to leave you - I need to…
I think we're going to have to leave this for another day.