4 ms·

If your desired outcome is to merely discredit your opponent and win the argument, maybe. If you are in pursuit of truth, no.

• tempestn 11y ago
  Once it has become clear that someone is a "Lord Voldemort", it seems to me there's little value in continued careful consideration of their positions. At that point, if it's possible, why not discredit them and allow the rest of the world to start ignoring them and spend time on more promising endeavours?
  • pjc50 11y ago
    "Discrediting" only works on some people. If it was universally applicable then Donald Trump wouldn't be the leading Republican candidate.
    • AlgorithmicTime 11y ago
      I'm convinced Trump could kill Marco Rubio on live TV in Times Square and receive a bump in the polls.
      • deleted 11y ago
        [deleted]
      • douche 11y ago
        I'm not convinced Rubio wouldn't look like this if he got ripped in half[1] [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Z5sX4qC5HE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Z5sX4qC5HE
      • jimbokun 11y ago
        Well, Trump has basically already claimed as much himself. http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jan/24/donald-trump-says-he-could-shoot-somebody-and-still-not-lose-voters http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jan/24/donald-trump-...
    • tempestn 11y ago
      Agreed. My argument was vs my parent's statement that it wouldn't be useful (for the pursuit of truth) even when it was possible.