Quote of the Day

"Enlightened statesmen will not always be at the helm." --James Madison

Quote of the Day

"The [U.S.] Constitution is a limitation on the government, not on private individuals... It does not prescribe the conduct of private individuals, only the conduct of the government... It is not a charter for government power, but a charter of the citizen's protection against the government." --philosopher and novelist Ayn Rand (1905-1982)

How many ...

How many years of "education" do you need to learn to hate your country? How many great men of superior qualities must be impugned before you lose all faith in the foundations of your country?

Quote of the Day

"We can't reduce taxes until we reduce government spending, and I have to point out that government does not tax to get the money it needs; government always needs the money it gets." --Ronald Reagan (1911-2004)

Quote of the Day

"The president dismisses his lack of success by claiming he has not communicated his message enough. Really? I don't care how many news conferences you have, how many speeches you give, or how much money you spend on public relations, if the dog food is bad, the dogs won't eat it." --former Oklahoma Congressman J. C. Watts

Quote of the Day

"The Weather Channel reported Thursday that last week's ice storms in the South knocked out electricity in some areas for a week. Oklahoma has a firewood shortage because the trees are all frozen. People are staying warm by burning Al Gore's books." --comedian Argus Hamilton

Quote of the Day

"It is error alone which needs the support of government. Truth can stand by itself." --Thomas Jefferson

Identify/Disarm Liberal "Debate" Tactics

It is a rare characteristic to be absolutely uninterested in the judgment and opinions of your fellow man. (Those fortunate few are either psychotic, vain, or completely comfortable and confident with themselves. You can judge for yourself where most fall in this spectrum.) Otherwise, humans always try to find some agreement to feel reassured that our own opinions and thoughts are cogent and accurate with others' perceptions. As a result, we discuss, argue, and debate. 

We all know someone who loves to win debates. They'll stop at nothing to win a point in a debate. They are very manipulative, and unfortunately we often can be manipulated by these tactics. It takes great effort to develop an understanding, but it can be worth that effort.

 

Part of what confounds understanding of each other has to do with language and debate tactics. Personally, we strive to speak as clearly as possible about a subject and avoid digressions which would muddle everything. These master debaters, they will try everything to win, and there are some tactics which we'd like to illuminate and discuss. 

People, like cattle, run in herds of similar quality. Their opinions are true, and they need only turn to a fellow nearby to be reassured. Under those circumstances, you could debate, employ logic, and scream until apoplexy, and the recipient of your efforts will only low or bleat whatever contradictory nonsense similarly lowed and bleated by his peers. Cattle diverging from the herd get cut down by predators. When you can distract a "perfectly normal beast" and he's a particularly smart animal, you might be able to begin some basic discussion and here are some standard, instinctual responses.

 

(1) State complete contradictions using large words and without blinking.

Don't be distracted by this one. Large words are often a shield for the ignorant. If you re-word the contradictions in smaller words in a commonsense colloquialism you might be able to hit a human response.

(2) Re-define large words to suit your meaning.

As stated in (1), large words can be used by the ignorant in their hope that you equal their ignorance. When you show a clear understanding of the definition, they'll devolve the discussion to word definitions and stop actually discussing the idea at hand. Don't be diverted. Reduce the conversation to small words and hope you don't have to worry about the definition of "is".

(3) Make use of experts, statistics, and other "well-known" facts to support the position.

The beast is calling back to his herd for help. It's hard to come prepared with enough facts to combat other facts. Unfortunately, facts don't do the job; you need to interpret your facts. As a result, you use your experts to fight his experts. This doesn't work. Don't let it get this far. Use every day experiences and translate the idea.

(4) Attack anyone of value who is the foundation of the opposing side.

Ignore these attacks as though they didn't happen. If you respect someone and their judgment, don't let it show!

Remember, the key to good debate is not obliteration, but understanding. If your opponent begins to exhibit signs of slash-and-burn-win-at-all-costs tactics, it may be a signal that intelligent debate is not possible, and the situation becomes axiomatic. "Never debate a fool for the audience won't know who he is."

Consider This

If Democrats are for the poor and downtrodden and if Republicans are only for the rich guys... That means that the Democrats want MORE poor and downtrodden to vote for them and the Republicans want MORE rich people to vote for them. Which country do you want to live in?