General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: We should have been colonizing the solar system by now. [View all]tama
(9,137 posts)Long time ago I was active in drug policy debates. The opponent very seldom if ever yields and says that I was wrong and you are right no matter how strong and convincing the arguments are - fear of losing face alone is enough to prevent that in most cases. So when you are having public debate on public forum such as Internet, it's not convincing the other guy and getting him admit he's wrong that matters - if you are campaigning for some policy change and favor of public opinion. And not even the arguments themselves are that important, how ever rational.
The audience of "undecided" with no strong prejudice to either side is who you are really talking to. They may get and remember some of the rational arguments more or less wrong, but what they go with is emotion. People looking guidance and leadership in issues where they are undecided and have open mind choose the side that appears emotionally more stable, affirmative and reassuring, because that's how we are socially and psychologically wired and for good reasons.
In short - you lose your cool, you lose the debate. Politics 101.