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Showing posts from March 25, 2018

It's Not What You Think, It's How You Present It

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I was a debater back in the day. Our high school team was very successful, thanks in large part to a coach who knew argumentation and demanded we learn to do it correctly. I went on to college debate and more coaches who taught me how logical argument must go. In its most basic form a point of debate should: 1. State your position clearly 2. Explain your position 3. Support your position with evidence 4. Restate your position in a brief, easily remembered form That's why Facebook makes me crazy. Today's social media allows for arguments so weak they'd be laughable if our society weren't in peril because of them. These arguments are tossed into the public forum from the highest levels of our government down to the lowest levels of education, people who can't even spell the word argue . Not only are pathetically weak arguments presented, but when someone responds, that weak argument usually descends into name calling and insults. Here are a few examples o