Like many commenters here I am disappointed by the lack of emphasis in this article of listening to the other side. Which is strange because at the end it conce

Like many commenters here I am disappointed by the lack of emphasis in this article of listening to the other side. Which is strange because at the end it concedes that it is not about winning the argument but gaining insight, valuable ideas, a sensible course. One of the smartest ways I know to approach a discussion with insight in mind, is called steelmanning. It is the opposite of strawmanning. In strawmanning you attack altered, weakened versions of the other side's argument. In steelmanning you attack its best, most convincing version. You even seek to corroborate the argument and verify it with your opponent before attacking it. The benefit is that you genuinely have to understand the other's arguments before arguing against them. The following blogpost explains it very well. https://themerelyreal.wordpress.com/2012/12/07/steelmanning/ https://themerelyreal.wordpress.com/2012/12/07/steelmanning/