Thread: why are we so obsessed with proving other people wrong and making ourselves look good?

Originally Posted by no-Name

when I see someone being a dick, I confront them about it and engage in a conversation with them. I converse with them, and tell them why they're being a dick, and how to stop it.

Yea, that does work, I think everybody has been told that at least once, and I usually fuckin hate it, even if I know they're right, but I usually only listen if it comes from a person I have a lot of respect for.

Not everybody's obsessed with that sort of thing. I love to have intellectual conversations. It's just that debates always have more than one viewpoint, and you need to debate (not argue, debate) in order to find the best answer/solution to the problem.

Now, I know that it gets heated when people are talking about religious views, but that's because religious individuals hold views that they were taught ever since they were growing up, and it makes them uncomfortable when people challenge their beliefs. Eventually you end up having a never ending stream of logical fallacies from the creationists' side, atheists tearing them a new asshole, mockery coming from both sides, etc, and so it gets very emotional for some people who can't handle a real debate. However in most other debates, aside from politics, this is not the case. It's simply a handful of people throwing out ideas and analyzing the subject to prove the point they think is right, and when someone gets proved wrong, it's not a big deal.


Personally, I'm more concerned with advancing my own viewpoint. I don't tie myself to any particular views because that doesn't allow personal progress. Therefore, I'm not interested very much at all in simply defending my position for the sake of it; however, my intelligence permits me to take the best position and defend it pretty well in the large majority of debates.

Originally Posted by MindGames

Not everybody's obsessed with that sort of thing. I love to have intellectual conversations. It's just that debates always have more than one viewpoint, and you need to debate (not argue, debate) in order to find the best answer/solution to the problem.

Now, I know that it gets heated when people are talking about religious views, but that's because religious individuals hold views that they were taught ever since they were growing up, and it makes them uncomfortable when people challenge their beliefs. Eventually you end up having a never ending stream of logical fallacies from the creationists' side, atheists tearing them a new asshole, mockery coming from both sides, etc, and so it gets very emotional for some people who can't handle a real debate. However in most other debates, aside from politics, this is not the case. It's simply a handful of people throwing out ideas and analyzing the subject to prove the point they think is right, and when someone gets proved wrong, it's not a big deal.


Personally, I'm more concerned with advancing my own viewpoint. I don't tie myself to any particular views because that doesn't allow personal progress. Therefore, I'm not interested very much at all in simply defending my position for the sake of it; however, my intelligence permits me to take the best position and defend it pretty well in the large majority of debates.

Well said sir.

Do you think that it's because people are wrong and that you're just projecting the part about people trying to make themselves look good? It is a little sloppy and arrogant to make presumptions concerning others motives.

As someone who sometimes posts very bluntly and passionately, there are probably several people here who would consider me 'a bit of a dick'. There's likely some truth in that.

However, the reason why I go about that isn't because of a need to make myself feel superior, get a kick out of insulting people, or love ripping apart peoples' beliefs, nor is it because I'm filled with hatred.

When I do post in such a way, then there's generally a constructive reason behind it. Others will disagree with me here, but sometimes, I think the benefit of saying to someone "you're being fucking stupid" outweighs the drawbacks. Now I'm not perfect and I'm flawed like everyone else, and have bad days, but generally that is the case.

It's important to note that my reasons are not the same as for many others out there. Some simply look for a target. Some attack others out of fear, or because they perceive something about that person as being an attack on their beliefs. It might be to gain social acceptance by conforming to group beliefs. In the case of someone calling another 'fat' or 'ugly' then it could even be an immature way of expressing disgust. The person might well be insecure. There are a whole bunch of reasons.

"A Man convinced against his will is of the same opinion still."
— Benjamin Franklin