This is my Opinion

ideaEver tried discussing politics, religion or philosophy with someone who turns out to have their own skewed view of the world?

Personally, I can argue ’till my face turns blue, but at no point do I plan to convince the other person of what I believe. I don’t really care what they believe, my goal is just to share my opinion and show them that life through my eyes is more right than through theirs. However the more I think about it the more it seems that when we argue we do try to achieve acceptance of our argument in the arguing party. Otherwise what’s the point of arguing if the other party always denies your claims. I mean it’s one thing to have opinions denied but it’s another to fight over common knowledge (be it wrong in the long run). Though it’s not exactly possible for someone of different opinion to accept yours in an argument, especially if it completely contradicts their own. Hence the issues that arise from arguing with children, the uneducated and people who think they know everything.

I had an interesting run-in with some strange fellows recently. I plan to write more on this later, maybe even a series, about God, religion and how fucking retarded some people are. Sometimes I wish I belonged to a debate club. I think arguing ideas and theories is in my blood, not to mention I get a real kick out of it. Good thing that I can admit to my, sometimes incorrect opinion/facts/ideas, otherwise some arguments could last forever. Some people, have quite a problem with that you know…

To be honest, I don’t think anything positive can ever come out of an argument. The only plausible way to share your opinion, is simply to share your opinion and not to expect your opponent to respond with acceptance. I think people have trouble doing that. When they hear one side of an argument that actually makes more sense to them than what they believe, they are very unlikely to drop their belief and accept the new idea. That would not only make them appear dumb/weak but it would undermine their self-esteem and confidence. That is why those type of battles almost always end in verbal diarrhea and sometimes bloodshed.

The lesson here folks, share your opinion like it’s your own opinion, don’t try to prove to other people that you are right and the rest of the world is wrong. Nobody likes a bigot and nobody wants to abandon their system of beliefs in a snap.

For example, the blog http://townofautumn.com/blog/ is filled to the rim with bigots. I vowed never to post on that place again but it sure is entertaining to read their biased view of the God, religion and the world. As usual, when there is a crowd of idiots, there is a leader, one who calls himself Martian. But more on that feud later…

12 Responses to “This is my Opinion”

  1. Pete Says:

    Interesting points and a good read overall.

    The key to a successful debate, in my opinion, is mutual respect. Being confident in your position, while important, should not exclude the possibility of change when presented a better opinion.

    My other advice: NEVER get in an argument with someone who you know is a jerk. There are plenty of people who, even if they have a wildly different world view then yourself, just want the best for humanity. That sets them apart from people who take on political beliefs just to be a part of the system and have a \’team\’ to root for so they can feel good about themselves.

    /Long Comment

  2. Jennifer Says:

    I think where I tend to get into trouble with arguments is that I have no problem having people disagree with my perspective on this thing or the other. Somebody might be able to get me temporarily riled in the course of a debate, but generally I don’t walk away from a debate angry.

    But, a lot of people don’t emotionally detatch the way that I do, and I don’t keep that in mind enough.

    One of the reasons why I gave it up as one of my favorite “sports.”

  3. Sparkling Says:

    And then there’s the people who disagree in arguments just for the sake of disagreing and keeping the argument alive.

    Arguing can be an art form

  4. an0n Says:

    What if you’re that person with that ‘skewed view’?

    Obviously you are since you said:
    “show them that life through my eyes is more right than through theirs”

    That, alone, destroys any respect one could fathom for you. As what you say is a destructive and naive mindset.

    Please go think about what you written.

  5. an0n Says:

    Forgot to mention; Your post is dripping with contradictions, you state that one should share their opinions freely yet you seem to think it is your duty to force yours upon others. In other words, you’re no different than the ones you discuss – people who cannot accept any other argument.

    Here’s some advice: when someone is upsetting you or you disagree with them about something – either agree to disagree or if you can, block their post from view. For example, I have blocked you on digg simply because you spammed your blog containing a
    confused mindset.

    Also, by your logic, my attempts at pointing out the flaws in your argument are pointless since you’ll simply ignore them.

    Feel free to reply (email?) and show me the correct perception of the world is correct. I’m begging you.

    If you can, please merge my last post and this, sorry about that.

  6. Alex Says:

    an0n in reply to your first comment:
    Perhaps your browser does not support the CSS attribute “TEXT-DECORATION: line-through” which displays a line through the text ‘and show them that life through my eyes is more right than through theirs’. In case it displays fine and you just wish to make a smart remark, my point is lost on you.

    an0n in reply to your second comment:
    Perhaps your browser also fails to display to you the title of the post you were leaving a comment for … ‘This is my Opinion’. I don’t know how after a title like that you can possibly have beef with my “contradictions”.

    By my logic, all I would do is agree to disagree, you are the one who chooses to “block” me. Thus if I were to follow the logic that you think is my logic, I would have your comments marked as spam and removed. See the difference?

    Now let me take care of the rest of your comments.

    What if you’re that person with that ’skewed view’?
    What if you’re the person with the skewed view who thinks that my view is skewed? See my point? It’s irrelevant who’s view is skewed, I never said my skew was better than yours, I just stated the obvious.

    That, alone, destroys any respect one could fathom for you. As what you say is a destructive and naive mindset.

    Please go think about what you written.

    I do not seek anyone’s respect, after all this is the Internet.

    And as for the rest of your comments (I’m sort of lazy to dissect this any further), let me explain to you the idea behind my blog. It’s not a place you come to find facts, it’s a place of thoughts (guess what this post which category this post was tagged under!).

    I am no different than the ones I discuss, I am after all only human…

  7. Jennifer Says:

    Jeez … some people are so literal!

  8. Gillie Says:

    I came here via the BOB wondering whether to accept your challenge – but decided you would win so I didn’t! It was townofautumn that caught my eye; I am not a great one for conflict, but am at heart an opinionated old bat, the combination of which can make my life very difficult. I posted once on TofA from a Christian viewpoint, naively of the opinion that it was a discussion, and soon discovered that discussion was not on the cards. So I bowed out. I have great friends whose views I would no more hold than I would voluntarily slit my throat – so I’mm with Pete on the jerk front 🙂

  9. an0n Says:

    Thanks for replying, didn’t expect you to.

    You had crossed a part before I even arrived, was this a realisation of a mistake?

  10. David Says:

    A formal debate is more fun than discussing things with individuals who “take themselves seriously.” While you can argue a point in a debate, you are not arguing with a person.

    Formal debates also require that you recognize the merits of the countering position before you support your own thesis, something that rarely happens when arguing with a person.

    First time here, will be back!

  11. an0n Says:

    Jennifer, I took what was said too literally.

    Can’t say I was aware of the strike through style here and its meaning, completely misinterpreted it.

    This subject of arguing and debating is interesting since my first impression was one of those people you spoke off. Of course that’s not true now since I now understand your strikethrough. Without the strike and it comes off as a little arrogant.

    Sorry for the aggression there. The irony, I forsee arrogance and in attempt to dispel it, displays arrogance.

    Alex, it took a while for someone to reply, to avoid double posting and all.

  12. Alex Says:

    you’ve been waiting for someone to post? holly smokes, don’t worry about double posts!


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