From: ShunkW <shunkw@sbcglobal.net>
Date: Tue, Jul 13, 2010 at 7:00 AM
Subject: Conservative Debating Styles on the Internet
To: ShunkW <shunkw@sbcglobal.net>
Conservative Debating Styles on the Internet
I have been surfing a few Conservative blogs like Breitbart and Freerepublic and I have noticed a few very consistent trends with the debate tactics. Not that any of this is important, Internet debate being a truly futile pursuit, but it is interesting. It offers a fair amount of insight into the Tea Party/Red State GOP voter. I never signed up debate-club in school but I am fairly certain that most of these fall into the category of "logical fallacy".
The style of discussion I have noted here is mostly used in reactions to statements by Liberals in the comments section of these blogs. These are probably trolls, but it's difficult to tell as many Conservatives can, apparently, be trolled with facts.
Democrats are the racists!
No, we're not racist, you're racist. That's the essence of it. Some may go to the trouble of digging up historical facts to prove this. Lincoln era Democrats were racist! Also, "Democrat" and "liberal" are interchangeable to these folks.
Parents' basement!
Yes, all people who disagree with them on the Internet are nerds in their parents' basement. It's one of the oldest stereotypes and the Conservatives have discovered it. If you don't know who somebody is and they are not on your side, you pull this one out. It's the all-purpose insult directed at anonymous strangers.
You misspelled something
Countering arguments requires knowledge and effort. Most people on the Internet learn early on to ignore poorly constructed arguments along with typos. Not these guys. Misspell something in a complex argument and that is what they will seize on, like spell-checking teachers armed with new red pens.
You lose!
That's it. That's the complete response. The announcement of the fact that you lost the argument. Game over. Sometimes it is prefaced with a slogan, like "you Democrats are stupid, you lose. Game over."
Bong
For these people weed is evil, but not just any weed-smoking, bong-smoking. The best response, therefore, is to attribute the opposing argument to weed-smoking. It is assumed that all Liberals smoke weed. I find it interesting that bongs are referenced particularly. Maybe most of these people, when they smoke, or when they have experimented in the past, rolled joints.
You're scared!
This is an addendum of the "you lose" one above. Whatever you say it means that you are scared. However you respond to them, or if you don't respond at all, it's a sign of your fear, because you know they are right and sense the overwhelming wrongness of your own position.
Troll!
This means that they don't have to take anything you say seriously. You with your tiresome refusal to agree with them, can be countered with the applications of this label. Like the Parents' response, it is an old Internet label, newly discovered by them. If they choose not to respond with facts or truth it is because they have chosen not to be baited by you.
Black guy quote
Accusations of racism are often met with a quote by Martin Luther King or Booker T. Washington. If you quote MLK or Booker T. you are not a racist. It's like a bulletproof vest. Nobody could possibly think that you hate black folks if you paste something you copied from a wikiquote.
Conspiracy!
The Liberal Democrat Complex has nothing else to do but frame Conservatives for racism among other things. Everything a dissenter says on these boards is an indication of some greater conspiracy to take down the Tea Party movement, or Sarah Palin, or the members of that particular blog, or white people, or America in general, "America" consisting entirely of Red States.
Username jab
Invariably there will be a comment on your username. Clearly, the anonymity of the Internet and the fact that they don't have your driver's license in their possession is a problem for them. It is as if they want something unique to you to latch onto. Something beyond your words, that can be used to discredit everything you say, not just the one argument.
http://lowlyserf.nfshost.com/?p=8
Sw
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