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> It's amazing to me that the top-rated comment in this thread broadly generalizes both "coastal intellectuals" and "Middle America" with insulting stereotypes.

> It's amazing to me that the top-rated comment in this thread broadly generalizes both "coastal intellectuals" and "Middle America" with insulting stereotypes. It's amazing to me that you took this (what you've recognized as) hyperbole'd and obviously emotionally filled post and assumed this is how I act in daily life, a point which I didn't feel I needed to make but apparently must do so is that of course I do not dismiss everyone from a coastal area as being a pseudo intellectual. That doesn't stop the majority of them from proving to be exactly that, but you know, I do try. FTR, I never once intended to insult the midwest. I prefer it here, and that may well be simply because I've never lived anywhere else.

derefr 11y ago
Using hyperbole in a discussion about politics will almost always get you in trouble. To be safe from this, you basically have to talk about your political views with all the detached clinical nuance of a biologist "sacrificing" lab mice to biopsy them. (That was hyperbole too, and I fully expect to get in trouble for it.) My personal ideal for "well-done political debate" is comes from economists: they can quickly distinguish between facts, speculation about facts, and value judgements, and then engage with the first two while steering clear of the third. (It does make for some silly interviews, though: journalists basically only care about people's value-judgements, and economists will redirect every attempt at getting theirs into a discussion about some fact or another.)
- engi_nerd 11y ago
  Quite often on the internet, and in life, I see situations that make me think, "That guy got in trouble/got grief because he has a sense of humor and everyone around him is wilfully not getting the joke".
linkregister 11y ago
I explicitly acknowledged that this comment was an outlier from your ordinary train of thought. I referenced your otherwise calm comment history. I don't know where you got the impression I thought this represented you as a person. However, I apologize. I do not intend to offend.

derefr 11y ago

Using hyperbole in a discussion about politics will almost always get you in trouble. To be safe from this, you basically have to talk about your political views with all the detached clinical nuance of a biologist "sacrificing" lab mice to biopsy them. (That was hyperbole too, and I fully expect to get in trouble for it.) My personal ideal for "well-done political debate" is comes from economists: they can quickly distinguish between facts, speculation about facts, and value judgements, and then engage with the first two while steering clear of the third. (It does make for some silly interviews, though: journalists basically only care about people's value-judgements, and economists will redirect every attempt at getting theirs into a discussion about some fact or another.)

engi_nerd 11y ago
Quite often on the internet, and in life, I see situations that make me think, "That guy got in trouble/got grief because he has a sense of humor and everyone around him is wilfully not getting the joke".

linkregister 11y ago

I explicitly acknowledged that this comment was an outlier from your ordinary train of thought. I referenced your otherwise calm comment history. I don't know where you got the impression I thought this represented you as a person. However, I apologize. I do not intend to offend.