Hyperbole is the sign of times. The president exaggerates everything which set's the tone. Talk show hosts and news analysts seeking notoriety and improved rating blow everything out of proportion. Any republican mentioning the high crime rate in a black neighborhood is going to be labeled a racist even it he just quotes a known facts. Any democrats that suggest we need comprehensive immigration reform, will be accused of supporting open borders even thou there is not a single democrat presidential candidate that supports open borders. And for that matter polls of democrats show most democrats don't believe in open borders either.Submitting facts to set the record straight is fine. Just don't expect it to change the opinion of the person you are debating. Of course what we do on USMB is not real debating.Although I agree with most of your post, cognitive scientists have determined by many studies that facts and rational arguments do not change opinions. They only polarize opinions
Intriguing.
I must be unique in that way then.
If you want to change hearts and mind, you have to establish a dialog and you can't do that by proving your adversary is wrong.
My opinion is this: Never refer to the person you are debating with as an "adversary". That only hardens them to your viewpoints... or in your words, it further "polarizes" their opinion against yours.
Furthermore, the person you are debating should not live in ignorance if facts are readily available to contradict their argument. Nor should they live in ignorance of facts. One of the worst things, I believe, is to let a person continue believing something that isn't true when there are facts and evidence to the contrary. How they handle that information is a burden for them to bear alone.
This. ^^
That's more to the point --- correcting the record. The partisan who insists on peddling mythologies isn't going to be swayed, but the third-party reader deserves to know what the reality is.
I agree, but I can't seem to get past the constant hyperbole. You see it within seconds in these forums. I can't even engage with people I pretty much agree with due to how the arguments are framed. Projection, stereotyping and dehumanizing seems to rule the environment here, so I tend to act accordingly. Oh well, no one is perfect.
The image of liberals created by conservatives and the image conservatives created by liberals are simply a fantasy that matches a very small minority of each party. However, USMB seems to have more than it's share of those small minorities posting.
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