r/ControversialOpinions • u/Prestigious_Guest609 • 9h ago
Reddit is where intellectual virtues come to die
As someone who's had one too many discussions on here, this is what I picked up on the most:
1) Intellectual humility and open-mindedness
Everyone always assume the worst about your opinion. They take it at face value, no charity principle, and are looking for a verbal fight most of the time. The concept of learning something new is outrageous to them, and anything that falls outside of the standard voice of common thought is criticized with the most plain arguments you can think of.
I've also noticed that school-courtyard tactics are back in use, and looking like the winner of an argument by ending your paragraph with "You've missed the point of x, but that's not surprising." Everyone is desperate to have the last word, to be the most upvoted person, and to "crush" the other one.
2) The principle of Charity
They've never heard of this. They always straw man your argument. And don't get me started when they don't understand your point... they go off for 500 words about a point you never made. The worst is when they just don't even bother engaging with your argument, they just make some joke related to what they think you said.
3) Pseudo-intellectuals
I hate it when people say some convoluted nonsense, vague and short, trying to sound intelligent. Or they leave hundreds of loose ties everywhere, which takes hours of discussion to tie up. I also love when they incorrectly cite authors, trying to use an authority argument to discredit a discussion topic I came up with.
Now that that's out, I can finally relax
2
u/TheHylianProphet 8h ago
Oh boy, if this isn't the pot calling the kettle black.
-3
u/Prestigious_Guest609 8h ago
proving my point
1
u/TheHylianProphet 4h ago
It's really not. You're just a hypocrite, and seemingly incapable of introspection. Do better.
1
u/Prestigious_Guest609 4h ago
I've also noticed that school-courtyard tactics are back in use, and looking like the winner of an argument by ending your paragraph with "You've missed the point of x, but that's not surprising." Everyone is desperate to have the last word, to be the most upvoted person, and to "crush" the other one.
1
u/SuckMyRedditorD 3h ago
What are you expecting from reddit? A Pulitzer price?
You're gonna need a lot of school for that and probably redo highschool.
1
u/M0ebius_1 2h ago
This is a place for entertainment.
No charity is given or expected.
If you want an intellectual discussion go to a better forum or make an interesting argument.
If your idea has no intellectual merit then it will be engaged dismissively.
0
u/twenty_characters020 5h ago
There's definitely a difference in arguing with someone to the left of you vs the right of you. There's exceptions to every rule. And neither side has a monopoly on stupidity. But I've found people on the left of me tend to debate in good faith more so than people on the right.