Arguing with anonymous strangers on the Internet is a sucker's game

[jack]

"Arguing with anonymous strangers on the Internet is a sucker's game because they almost always turn out to be -- or to be indistinguishable from -- self-righteous sixteen-year-olds possessing infinite amounts of free time" -- Randy Waterhouse, Cryptonomicon.

When quoting characters from books, I never know how much to credit the character and how much the author. Sometimes the quote is clearly a view of the author. Sometimes it clearly isn't. Sometimes it's half and half.

I should stay out of "Mock the stupid". Its amusing, but I *always* end up wanting to say "the stupid comment *could* have been right" and if I do, I end up in a counterproductive argument

Stupid person: blah blah hitler was evil because he was a communist blah blah
Other person: quotes it to mts
Me: Well, he was socialist :) (OK, only nominally, but then was Stalin any better?)
Helpful person: Was a fascist, not a socialist. Don't let the name fool you. [explanation and further argument cut]

Anyway, I should:

( ) Continue to argue to what extent Hitler[1] was a "socialist" and what "nominally" means.
( ) Run and hide
(*) De-escalate. Explain the joke, and put aside the wider issue of how different or contradictory socialism and fascism (as opposed to their most famous incarnations, or their histories) really are.

I was going to make it a poll, but then it was so obvious I should write in option 3 I decided just to do that. I will try to be *de*escalating and polite, wish me luck :)

ETA: No, it's no good. I had to get into the sociopolitical argument. Doh.

[1] Yes, he was mentioned in the post. That's allowed.

Comments

[gileswl.livejournal.com]

I think I used to be one of those sixteen year olds, and I was going to suggest option two. But I see it's too late.

[cartesiandaemon.livejournal.com]

I think maybe I *am*. I mean, I don't just want to be contrary, and don't have infinite free time, but I do find it hard not to want to be precise, and hard to let that go.

[freecloudboy.livejournal.com]

Just saw this on dragonthingy's thingy list. felt I should say that I forcibly and at pain of something nasty removed myself from all internet mailing lists and forums I was on. In the 10 years I participated in them I just seemed to end up relentlessly in arguments and coming across like a 16 year old shouting 'YOU ARE WRONG I AM RIGHT PISS OFF'. Which actually started to bother me in real life after a while.

It was all the stranger as I just never get in an argument in real life and yet I continually fall out with people on the internet.

Oh and I specialised in Hitler and Mussolini at University :)

[cartesiandaemon.livejournal.com]

Hey, hello.

Yeah, I know there feeling. There's something about the anonymity, and something about the lack of verbal cues, and it's easy to escalate. I've been good so far, honest :)

Oh and I specialised in Hitler and Mussolini at University :)

LOL. Uh, no comment :)