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The problem is that the term is a combination of name calling and appeal to authority used to quickly discredit a theory, and has been applied to significant mi
by ynniv 6y ago
The problem is that the term is a combination of name calling and appeal to authority used to quickly discredit a theory, and has been applied to significant minority theories that have turned out to be true. It’s more work but better form to avoid the term and confront fringe theories with solid argumentation.
- jacquesm 6y ago"fringe theories" are bullet proof against solid argumentation. The counter argument is: you are a paid shill of - insert boogeyman shorthand here. If fringe theories would be susceptible to reason then the bulk of them wouldn't exist and the remainder would not be classified as a belief system but just another theory waiting for confirmation or rebuttal.
- ynniv 6y agoThis sounds like frustration at the inability to change the beliefs of people. People will often behave irrationally, and yes there is nothing we can do about that. They have done this forever, and likely will continue to do that forever. You can only have a rational argument with them if they care to find the truth, and most people most of the time do not. On the other hand, many people come to Hacker News explicitly to participate in rational discussion, and seeing this kind of low value dismissal is disappointing. I would have ignored it out of hand if it didn’t have your name on it.
- jacquesm 6y ago> seeing this kind of low value dismissal is disappointing > I would have ignored it out of hand Those two next to each other is kind of amusing.
- jessaustin 6y ago"low value dismissal" is the antecedent of the pronoun "it". On HN we routinely ignore low value dismissals. You know this: https://news.ycombinator.com/leaders https://news.ycombinator.com/leaders