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Beginner's Guide to Arguing Constructively

liamrosen.com

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Re: Beginner's Guide to Arguing Constructively

#63

Post by ElFitz »

hn_throwaway_99 wrote: post #6

I'll make these arguments: 1. I don't really think any of the tips and strategies in this article are helpful unless both (or all) parties go in to it with this same mindset. Which means that, for example, I believe it is simply impossible to have these kind of "constructive arguments" on, say, Twitter, for example. One of the things I like most about HN is the guidelines are clear about the goals of the forums, and…

Quite an interesting article about the false reason / emotions dichotomy: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/phenomena/2014/09...

> It’s true, as I wrote about last week, that emotions can bias our thinking. What’s not true is that the best thinking comes from a lack of emotion. “Emotion helps us screen, organize and prioritize the information that bombards us,”

As well as http://mitp.nautil.us/article/157/feelings-what-are-they-and...

> This realization turns the scientific language of emotion on its head. What are commonly called emotion functions in humans and animals are not emotional functions at all. They do not exist to make feelings. They are survival functions essential for the continued life of the individual or the species.

Re: Beginner's Guide to Arguing Constructively

#64

Post by simonh »

bottled_poe wrote: post #51
Aeolun wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> everyone argues from an emotional perspective You kind of have to. If you were not emotionally invested in some way, you wouldn’t be arguing.

Objectively false. Proven by this comment alone.

Maybe you are emotionally invested in appearing, or believing yourself to be objective? Perhaps that's why posting a terse, pithy comment felt so satisfying. ;)

Re: Beginner's Guide to Arguing Constructively

#65

Post by leroman »

hn_throwaway_99 wrote: post #6

I'll make these arguments: 1. I don't really think any of the tips and strategies in this article are helpful unless both (or all) parties go in to it with this same mindset. Which means that, for example, I believe it is simply impossible to have these kind of "constructive arguments" on, say, Twitter, for example. One of the things I like most about HN is the guidelines are clear about the goals of the forums, and…

Agree. What people say and what really motivates their opinion in the topic at hand are not necessarily the same, I find people not being truthful to themselves nor to the conversation, which is really why I find this arguing endevour a waste of time in many subjects

Re: Beginner's Guide to Arguing Constructively

#66

Post by cranium »

I would argue that the American people evolve in a less that ideal environment for constructive argumentation due to the biparty politics. It nearly seems by construction that if an issue is endorsed by a party, then the other must be against it. For the untrained partisan of party A, every partisans of party B disagrees on every issue by default. I can see why it becomes difficult to stay rational.

Obviously, some people are willing to meet and discuss constructively, but that requires additional efforts to think outside this biparty mold.

Re: Beginner's Guide to Arguing Constructively

#67

Post by mrmonkeyman »

phobosanomaly wrote: post #29
Aeolun wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> everyone argues from an emotional perspective You kind of have to. If you were not emotionally invested in some way, you wouldn’t be arguing.

I commonly argue positions I don't necessarily agree with. Often these are ideas that I don't agree with, but I can't articulate exactly why I disagree. When I argue it, I can get others to argue against the idea, and so I can discover points that I may not have been able to put to words. It's essentially idea farming .

So, you are emotionally invested in harvesting ideas. Fine.
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