For me the most important point of this piece is: >Seeming to be right justifies disrespect, contempt, and other forms of emotional pollution I don't think it

For me the most important point of this piece is: >Seeming to be right justifies disrespect, contempt, and other forms of emotional pollution I don't think it's about being right per se, but that feeling that you are right often also makes you feel justified in being an awful jerk to other people. This is especially true online. In my experience, the people who pride themselves on being brutally honest are more interested in the "brutal" part. And this behavior often hinders the spread of truth, because while rationally we should simple evaluate arguments on their own merits, in reality no one likes being treated badly and so people are going to be less receptive to even true statements delivered in an abusive way. The facile response to this is to cry that we're supposed to never say anything or do that would upset people so we have to hide the truth, but this is ridiculous. There's a huge gulf between being an asshole and never saying anything. Being right isn't a license to be a terrible person, and it would serve those in interested in the truth to remember that.