Stop Debating Online
Every day, posts online tempt us to debate. The 2016 election is in full swing. Tensions are rising over who will be appointed as Supreme Court justices, meaning gun rights and abortion are hot topics as well.You may decide to engage in one of these debates. If so, here's a bit of advice.Don't. Just don't.
Here's Why
The Internet Lacks Challengers
The internet is full of people on both sides of any issue ready to defend their position.But because of this, everyone is confident in their position, even if they're wrong. After all, so many people agree with them, so how could their opinion be wrong?The person who disagrees with you online is not a challenger. A challenge implies that there is a penalty for losing or a reward for winning. This is the case in election debates and in high school debates. Not online debates. Neither you nor your opponent will lose anything but time as a result of this battle.You believe that you're right and nothing will change that. Your opponent believes the same, and won't relent. This is no challenge. It's an exercise in futility.
You're Being Played
Did you know that the media loves it when we debate? The more you comment on a news article, use news sources for your Facebook debates, and so forth, the more they make money. You're fighting the good fight, but for benefit of the wrong people. The media are the ones stirring up this discord and hatred among the population.
Miscommunication
The internet is not a place where ideas are analyzed. It's where they're broadcasted.I competed for 4 years in speech and debate. We researched policies in depth and debated them the entire year. By the end of they year, everyone knew which policies worked and which ones didn't. These were productive debates. The topics were very complex, which meant no one made the mistake of thinking they knew everything. We were all finding out the answer together.Unlike those big policies, internet debates are simple. Arguments catch on when they sound like great arguments. This makes it easy for us to use them in our arguments.For example, black lives matter. Three words that everyone agrees with. Of course, not everyone agrees with the practices of the Black Lives Matter campaign. So when I say, "I disagree with Black Lives Matter.", people could get the impression that I'm racist (which I'm not).There's a logical and an emotional side to any argument. When you argue online, it's often taken personally. After all, your logical argument threatens what others perceive to be wrong because of how it makes them feel. Similarly, when you bring up an emotional appeal, it offends those who believe that your proposal is not pragmatic.
We're Dividing Ourselves
"If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand." ~Mark 3:25
We expect other people (we call them "politicians") to fix all of our problems for us once we elect them. What we fail to realize is that they aren't able to fix culture. They're elected to represent our culture. So long as we continue arguing without thinking, insulting without knowing, and dismissing thoughts without consideration, our culture will keep degrading.So let's say, "No more!" and quit arguing online. Let's set up real debates (more on that in this post) and actually figure out the answers to these problems. We can spend our time futilely arguing, sowing discord, and helping the media, or spend it improving our culture and fixing problems.But hey, that's debatable.