What are your most hated arguments when debating issues?

1. 70

   Nicole Froioposted 11 years ago

   What are your most hated arguments when debating issues?
   
   I often come across arguments that are gross generalizations, arguments that seem to pop up every single time someone runs out of reasonable arguments. Examples:
   
   - WHAT ABOUT OUR FREEDOM, ISN'T THIS THE LAND OF THE FREE? - this will ALWAYS pop up.
   - This happens to men too! Why aren't you talking about the men? What about the men? - mostly when talking about gender issues
   - This is PC gone mad!
   
   etc, etc. can you think of any others?

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2. 81

   junksellerposted 11 years ago

   Well, what about the men? You know, we don't have it so easy either. Yet no one ever talks about our issues. It's always women this, women that...That was a joke.
   
   For me it is global warming and climate change. And it crops up in lots of ways but one that really irritates me is the "my scientist is as good as your scientist" arguments, as if they were all the same. No, they're not. Just because some guy or gal calls themselves a scientist doesn't mean they know what they are talking about, actually are a scientist, have a decent education, work in the field, etc. For any group of professionals, people need to do at least some basic assessment of credibility.
   
   The other science one I love is the "they're all just theories" argument as if a religious theory and a scientific theory were the same thing. Similar to the people who want to blur science and religion together. This one often goes something like this: science doesn't know everything, therefore what isn't known could be the truth, and then they make this giant leap to say that X religion must be just as possible.
   
   I also love the reversal of reality arguments. These have come up a lot lately and basically are when someone will act as if not accepting their intolerance is somehow discriminatory against them. Like the Christian complaining about being persecuted because you have an issue with them attempting to deny homosexuals equal rights. They are the aggressor in denying rights, not the victim.
   
   One of my absolute favorites is, "It's unconstitutional." What the heck do you mean. If a policy or law is enacted by a democratically elected body operating via the authority of the Constitution than that policy or law is by definition Constitutional. What people really mean by this is that it is unconstitutional according to what they think the Constitution should be which is just plain stupid.
   
   This is American-centric by the way, I noticed you are in Brazil. I really hope to get down there some day.

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   1. 38

      Borsiaposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I love the one regarding age when someone says well if carbon, etc dating can't give us the day of the week then how can it tell millions of years.

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3. 36

   ChristinSposted 11 years ago

   I think anytime an argument is purely emotional or ideological without facts to substantiate the argument.  You can't debate an idealogue because they don't want to see other perspectives, they want to be "right". 
   
   I also think that debates can sometimes be fruitful, but arguments never are. Once people start focusing more on defending their position than discussing their position, the opportunity for growth and learning is lost.

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