When they started off by saying it was going to be a "line by line response" I knew they weren't going to be applying the principle of charity[0] and addressing

When they started off by saying it was going to be a "line by line response" I knew they weren't going to be applying the principle of charity[0] and addressing the most persuasive form of Sirer's argument and would be dismissing and—as you say—nitpicing his argument or side stepping the real issues. [0] http://philosophy.lander.edu/oriental/charity.html http://philosophy.lander.edu/oriental/charity.html