Discussing politics and other contentious sunjects online feels to me like it’s counterproductive these days and even though I try not to get suckered in, I often can’t help myself. Usually though I just end up feeling frustrated and sometimes angry at the other person either missing my points or refusing to accept them.
Thinking back to conversations I’ve had here and previously on Reddit, not only can I not remember an example of me “winning” the discussion and the other person changing their mind or conceding the point, I also cannot think of a time where my mind was changed either.
So have you ever begun a discussion online with someone with a different view point to yours and either you, or they, changed the others mind?
Yes, there were a few times I have managed to convince someone on here, even on “political” topics. Not so much on Reddit.
Plenty of times I’ve been convinced that I was wrong about important things as well, which I always try to own.
I wouldn’t say there’s definitive “winning” or “losing” an online argument. This is a public forum, your arguments are there for everyone to see, even if the person you’re talking to still disagrees by the end it may help someone else form a more informed opinion.