Perspective wrote: ↑Sat May 03, 2025 7:00 pm
Age wrote: ↑Sun Apr 27, 2025 6:24 am
Should not a 'philosophy forum' be so so-called 'anal', to you?
First, I appreciate that you are responding with reason. Thank you.
What I mean by “anal” is obsessing over something with little relevance and getting mad at others when they don’t similarly obsess.
1. What you personally consider as 'with little relevance' may not be at all, when all is 'looked into' and 'discussed'.
2. Why did you even begin to assume that 'I' was mad with any of 'you' people, here, let alone then going on to believe that your own made up assumption was actually true and right?
Perspective wrote: ↑Sat May 03, 2025 7:00 pm
Age wrote: ↑Sun Apr 27, 2025 6:24 am
Were you yet aware that 'the definitions' for the 'logical fallacies' above are not 'the definitions' that others have, and use?
Which, by the way, is why some human beings will just say things like, 'That is not a logical fallacy', while another is saying some thing like, 'Yes it is a logical fallacy'.
As always, until the 'actual definitions' for 'the words' being used in 'a discussion' are agreed upon and accepted, before the actual discussion takes place, then confusion and misunderstandings will prevail.
But, in order to find out, and agree upon, and accept the 'actual definitions', for 'the words', to be used within a discussion, some people class and consider 'this' as being 'too anal'. And, so the confusions and misunderstanding, in Life, just continue on.
That’s why I brought it up. I want to get other perspectives and to hopefully understand better.
But, this contradicts you also claiming that 'another's perspective' is 'so anal' and/or 'with little relevance'.
Again, what you find so-called 'anal' and/or 'with little relevance' another may not, and vice-versa, what another finds so-called 'anal' and/or 'with little relevance' you may not.
It is like unless 'the other' has the exact same 'perspective' as another individual, people are not Truly happy with one another.
Perspective wrote: ↑Sat May 03, 2025 7:00 pm
Also, I believe at least some attention and respect to logic is important to reasonable discussions. This could improve the experience of this forum.
I would suggest that if people were to just be Truly Honest and open, here, then through fully 'logically reasoned' discussions, only, then people would also uncover and work out the solution in how to find the actual irrefutable answers to all of what I call and label 'the meaningful questions, in Life', as well. Which are sometimes referred to as the 'age old', or 'philosophical' questions in Life.
Perspective wrote: ↑Sat May 03, 2025 7:00 pm
Age wrote: ↑Sun Apr 27, 2025 6:24 am
Why 'ad hominem attack', (when defined as,
(Attacking the person): This fallacy occurs when, instead of addressing someone's argument or position, you irrelevantly attack the person or some aspect of the person who is making the argument. )happen and occur so often in this forum is because the one doing 'the attacking' just can not 'attack' 'the words' being expressed themselves. Some people, here, in this forum, often use 'ad hominem attacks' in this forum because it is how they learned to feel better about 'themselves", hitherto when this is being written.
However, in saying 'this' I am not yet sure of what you mean by, 'ad hominem attack' when it means,
“poisoning the well,” a type of red herring. So, the reason why I say 'ad hominem attacks' are so often used on this forum might not align at all with your own definition for the term and phrase, 'ad hominem attack'.
Yes, I agree with that definition. I added poisoning the well because calling someone names is trying to frame the person (& hoping to influence the argument) in a bad way.
Okay, that makes sense to me and thank you for clarifying.
Perspective wrote: ↑Sat May 03, 2025 7:00 pm
If I understand you correctly, you think people use ad hominem attacks to feel better, by putting others down. That makes sense. It implies they live with an insecure sense of self & get easily upset & defensive so they go on the offense.
Yes you understood me correctly, here, but just to be clear this is one reason, and not the only reason.
Perspective wrote: ↑Sat May 03, 2025 7:00 pm
Age wrote: ↑Sun Apr 27, 2025 6:24 am
If you stay here long enough, or look 'deep enough', here, you will see that there are some 'women', here, who partake in 'ad hominem attacks', and quite frequently also. But, again, this is with the definition of 'ad hominem attack' that I presented, here.
I believe it & have seen plenty of women engage in ad hominem attacks too. The reason I suggested it may be a guy thing is I’ve noticed men like to put each other down in friendly & challenging ways more than women do - generally.
'Best friends' or 'mates', as sometimes closer friends are called, may well be able to 'put each other, so-called' down, in a 'friendly or challenging' way, but I am pretty sure that only on the very, very rarest of occasions, here, in this philosophy forum people put each other so-called 'down' in a 'friendly', or in a 'challenging', way.
Going 'out' or 'having' discussions with 'your best friends, buddies, and/or mates', and having 'friendly banter' is one thing, but 'we' are in a 'philosophy forum' where the only thing is any real importance, at all, is, absolutely, each and every word, as each and every word, and even lette can mean, and thus make, a so-called 'world of difference'.
To me anyway, if absolutely any one even thinks about, let alone wants to 'out another down', or even 'tries to' 'out another down' in my case, then, really, a 'philosophy forum' is not the Right place for them.
Perspective wrote: ↑Sat May 03, 2025 7:00 pm
Age wrote: ↑Sun Apr 27, 2025 6:24 amWill you elaborate on and/or explain further 'the definition', which you presented, here?
Sure, but which definition? Ad hominem attack? I mostly define it as calling names or otherwise putting someone down rather than addressing words they express & why they disagree. Part of a definition includes,
“… the speaker attacks the character, motive, or some other attribute of the person making an argument rather than the substance of the argument itself. This avoids genuine debate by creating a diversion.” This is why I related it to red herring.
Okay, and again thanks for clarifying, I agree with and accept 'this definitions', however, why would any one want to come to a 'philosophy forum' to 'debate' and/or 'genuinely debate'?
To me, a philosophy forum is certainly not 'the place' for 'debating'. And, considering the fact that just about every other forum or so-called 'social media' places are just about 'full of debates and/or debating', would it not be better if there were just one place left, which was for the sole purpose of just having actual 'peaceful, and open and honest, discussions, where through 'logical reasoning' alone the whole purpose was to discover and find what the actual answers in Life to the Truly meaningful 'age old' philosophical questions are, exactly, could actually take place, instead?
To me 'debating' involves just 'picking a side', or just 'already having a position', which one then tries their bardes to 'fight for'. And, obviously if one already has, and/or is holding, 'a position', already, that not absolutely every one could agree with, and accept, then 'that position' is not even worth repeating, let alone worth 'fighting for'. And, obviously, if some one wants to 'fight' for 'a view' or 'a position', then they do not want a Truly peaceful discussion anyway.
But, if some one does know of 'a view' in which every one could agree with, and accept, then through just a Truly open and honest 'logically reasoned', peaceful discussion, then 'that view' could be shared, and agreed with and accepted by absolutely every one. However, and of course, every one in 'the discussion' would first need to be completely open, and thus not already be of pre-conceived ideas, prejudices, nor of assumptions and beliefs. Each and every would also obviously be of wanting to learn and understand more, and of anew.
Perspective wrote: ↑Sat May 03, 2025 7:00 pm
What do you think is a good way to respond to ad hominem attacks?
To just never ever allow the attempted attacks to effect 'you' emotionally in any way whatsoever.
To actually 'respond to' 'the attack' will usually have no positive effect at all, a yway, as any one who even wants to and/does make an 'ad hominen attack' has not yet 'grown up' and/or 'matured' enough to 'take on', 'the responses', nor 'to respond' again, in any actual beneficial way anyway.
Perspective wrote: ↑Sat May 03, 2025 7:00 pm
I temporarily blocked Phil because I don’t want to subject myself to more ad hominem attacks. Should I have done that?
That is your choice alone.
'i', personally, do not block absolutely any one at all. As 'i' can only learn more and 'grow more' from 'listening to' and 'hearing' what every one has to say.
But, I do also have the ability to not be affected in any way at all emotionally by absolutely any thing that is said and written, here.
Perspective wrote: ↑Sat May 03, 2025 7:00 pm Life is short - who knows how much time we have? Why waste precious time on those who take their misery out on others to feel better? I could be mistaken.
What 'they' say, teaches 'me' how to communicate better with all people. But, in saying this obviously no one 'has to' 'listen to', nor 'take on', what 'the other' is 'saying'. But, if one does not 'listen to' 'another', then what they are 'really saying and meaning' could never be heard, nor understood. See, a lot of the time what people are 'saying' is not what they are 'actually meaning', and it is only through 'Truly listening' what is actually being 'said, and meant' can be Truly comprehended, and understood.
Like, for example, with "phil8659" I think that deep down behind what it says and writes, here, it has actually 'found' some thing, which could be very, very insightful and enlightening. However, getting past 'that one's' grandiose persona, to find out if has actual some actual epiphany, or not, is going to take some time. Which, by the way, I can see behind every one's 'persona', here, there is an absolute brightness of insight and enlightenment, which could and would make a 'world of difference' for humanity and for the betterment of every thing, but because of every one, here, lack of being 'listened to', fully and Correctly, previously, 'we' all have troubles or issues sharing our views properly, and Correctly, 'currently'.