• Egon [they/them]@hexbear.net
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    7 months ago

    An ad hominem isn’t just an attack on the other person’s character, that’s just an insult. An ad hominem is when you tie the quality of an argument to the character of the person making it.

    “You are an asshat, therefore your argument is wrong” is an ad hominem.

    “You are an asshat” is an attack of the writers characteristics/authority/insult/name-calling/funny/cool/good.

    People keep crying “AD HOMINEM” when they get insulted and it’s just the most obvious tell that they’re fucking stupid and don’t know what they’re talking about.

    • Ethalis@jlai.lu
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      7 months ago

      You should always start your argument with an ad hominem and, if it doesn’t work, slowly work your way towards insulting your interlocutor, the highest form of rethoric

        • mathemachristian [he/him]@hexbear.net
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          7 months ago

          No no, that’s name calling already, you jumped straight to the top. You need to cloak your disdain in a civil tone, because remember the next step is going to tone policing. So something like, “I don’t think you have a lot of experience arguing on the internet seeing as you come from a much smaller instance.” is much better bait.

              • BountifulEggnog [she/her]@hexbear.net
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                7 months ago

                I thought it was a joke about starting an argument with an ad hominem.

                :smuglord: actually, I think you’ll find that I did attack him personally instead of his underlying points, which according to rationalwiki, counts.

                spoiler

                It was/is but your bit was better. Admitting being wrong isn’t a step though. That’s also why I deleted it until you responded because I realized I’m not funny 😢

    • mathemachristian [he/him]@hexbear.net
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      7 months ago

      Its the recommended daily internet arguments per USDA guidelines.

      • At the bottom are your ad hominems, these lay a good foundation and give you the required dopamine for the day.
      • Then come your basic civility criticisms and tone policing to make sure everyone treats you with the respect you deserve.
      • Contradictions are of course necessary to make sure your position is represented and to make it harder for opposing views to get traction.
      • A few counterarguments here and there make sure that you get a bit of research done in order to be able to form new arguments. This is a good idea as arguments age over time and need to be replaced every so often.
      • A refutation is of course a long-term source of dopamine that you can refer back to in the upcoming days for a quick hit by marvelling at your own argument.
      • If you have taken care of all your daily internet argument requirements and still have time left, why then you get to do some name-calling. As a treat.
  • invo_rt [he/him]@hexbear.net
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    7 months ago

    Which layer of the chart is me acting like I’ve never heard of whatever is vexing the other person? Also what about purposefully mispronouncing names?

  • keepcarrot [she/her]@hexbear.net
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    7 months ago

    Is there a name for coming up with extremely unlikely scenarios where you’d be right? Like, very convoluted, technically possible, but extremely improbable

  • M68040 [they/them]@hexbear.net
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    7 months ago

    I have no regard for etiquette and will freely just shit talk the other guy under any and all circumstances. If anyone has a problem with this, they are free to try and stop me

  • Mactan
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    7 months ago

    the Sartre quote always comes to mind

    Never believe that anti-Semites are completely unaware of the absurdity of their replies. They know that their remarks are frivolous, open to challenge. But they are amusing themselves, for it is their adversary who is obliged to use words responsibly, since he believes in words. The anti-Semites have the right to play. They even like to play with discourse for, by giving ridiculous reasons, they discredit the seriousness of their interlocutors. They delight in acting in bad faith, since they seek not to persuade by sound argument but to intimidate and disconcert. If you press them too closely, they will abruptly fall silent, loftily indicating by some phrase that the time for argument is past.

  • AssortedBiscuits [they/them]@hexbear.net
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    7 months ago

    Pea brained: Using ad hominem because you have no real argument.

    Normal brained: Insulting your opponent once you realize ad hominem aren’t insults.

    Galaxy brained: Using ad hominem because informal fallacies aren’t actually logical fallacies.