I love winning debates, primarily because I've unsuccesfully tried to lose them a couple of times. Losing a debate might be fun, so can any loser, please, share what is the feeling?
So as in everything, I love to make people defeat their own point. I will give a tip on that in this very lesson, so pay attention. But first let's begin with the most important lesson of all:
1. Pick your battles according to your skill. In other words small enough to win in a landslide, yet not so small, to be branded a nickname for someone, who compensates something's small size, by picking battles small enough to gloat over. Figure one out, you have many a nickname like that, to pick from.
Winning a debate, is in no means an indicator, if you are right or wrong. Which brings us to top number two:
2. Spin. As far as spin doctors go, I am probably The Powerhead S.D. (attending), maybe I have an Esq. too, as well as a Ph. D. The trick about spin, is to be prepared, and to think in advance. It helps to be optimistic, to make spin sincere, so you can find a positive side in everything.
And the last one for today, as promised:
3. How to make people charge into their own defeat. My favorite situation is a piece of common knowledge, frequently one which is scientifically unverifiable (i.e. XXXX are the dumbest people. The problem? Define dumb and give a way to measure it statistically.), and claim, "everyone knows that". These words are a smart man's golden ticket. You now have the opportunity to steer them into saying that even complete layman in that field can tell you that. So that's the moment to nail them. "So you are saying complete laymen lead man's progress in their respective fields of laymanity (I think, I just figured out the etimology of "lameness")?". This is usually the signal for victory, the proverbial rhetorical white flag. The reductio ad retardum, when you are called a retard, and "beyond help".
And that's it for today, from the Savant of Debate!
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