UKIP Interview

[darmstadt]

Unfortunately you are right. Straw man is a common one too. It's actually quite difficult for an intelligent person to explain things in a way that would convince a stupid person of some cause without resorting to the very tactics we're criticising. Quite simply, a stupid person 'reasons' in a way which is so irrational it is beyond the comprehension of a (comparatively) rational person, and a rational person struggles to construct an argument sufficiently irrational to convince a stupid person.

Even an intelligent person can resort to violence sometimes, otherwise known as 'The Big Stick Method.' Luckily there is no such way to use this over the Internet...

[doodab]

Unfortunately you are right. Straw man is a common one too. It's actually quite difficult for an intelligent person to explain things in a way that would convince a stupid person of some cause without resorting to the very tactics we're criticising. Quite simply, a stupid person 'reasons' in a way which is so irrational it is beyond the comprehension of a (comparatively) rational person, and a rational person struggles to construct an argument sufficiently irrational to convince a stupid person.

I fear you may be implying that ms doodab is stupid

[speling bee]

Even an intelligent person can resort to violence sometimes, otherwise known as 'The Big Stick Method.' Luckily there is no such way to use this over the Internet...

Usually, we try to get a bit of real life data for a poster, work out their address and then make vague hints about where they live.

[speling bee]

I fear you may be implying that ms doodab is stupid

She certainly lacks judgment.

[Mich the Tester]

I fear you may be implying that ms doodab is stupid

No, ms doodab is a woman. Women have the amazing power of using a different dimension of logic that originates in a parallel universe.

I shall drive home shortly. I wonder if Lady Tester plays the old trick of 'haven't you noticed anything', leading me to stumble through the standard checklist;

- haircut
- shoes
- dress
- erm, what then?

[vetran]

Unfortunately you are right. Straw man is a common one too. It's actually quite difficult for an intelligent person to explain things in a way that would convince a stupid person of some cause without resorting to the very tactics we're criticising. Quite simply, a stupid person 'reasons' in a way which is so irrational it is beyond the comprehension of a (comparatively) rational person, and a rational person struggles to construct an argument sufficiently irrational to convince a stupid person.

conversely an intelligent person with different pressure points may appear stupid because their reasoning is coloured by their own interests or prejudices.

[doodab]

No, ms doodab is a woman. Women have the amazing power of using a different dimension of logic that originates in a parallel universe

That must be it then.

[DodgyAgent]

Unfortunately you are right. Straw man is a common one too. It's actually quite difficult for an intelligent person to explain things in a way that would convince a stupid person of some cause without resorting to the very tactics we're criticising. Quite simply, a stupid person 'reasons' in a way which is so irrational it is beyond the comprehension of a (comparatively) rational person, and a rational person struggles to construct an argument sufficiently irrational to convince a stupid person.

The straw man argument is a very useful tool to get people to explain themselves properly. When someone suggests that someone is a "dumbass" for creating a policy that is against that individuals self interest then asking the question "does that mean all good politicians follow their own interests"? is a perfectly reasonable way to challenge what was initially a lazy unexplained remark.

[Mich the Tester]

conversely an intelligent person with different pressure points may appear stupid because their reasoning is coloured by their own interests or prejudices.

Oh you're here too! I'd forgotten!

Darmstadt said we should stop using big words!

[Mich the Tester]

The straw man argument is a very useful tool to get people to explain themselves properly. When someone suggests that someone is a "dumbass" for creating a policy that is against that individuals self interest then asking the question "does that mean all good politicians follow their own interests"? is a perfectly reasonable way to challenge what was initially a lazy unexplained remark.

Possibly, but I suspect it's more commonly used to misrepresent another person's views when promoting one's own views. It's easy; twist another person's words into a ridiculous viewpoint that's easy to attack, then attack the ridiculous viewpoint instead of the original, rationally defendable point. It works when trying to persuade observers with very limited training in logic.