(no subject)
This article about analogies is excellent. It has honestly influenced the way I plan to explain things in the future to someone that I'm arguing with.
The funny bit is that the author (Scott Adams) accidentally provided an example. In a post about gender rights in which he argued that both men and women are discriminated against, he used this phrasing:
The reality is that women are treated differently by society for exactly the same reason that children and the mentally handicapped are treated differently. It’s just easier this way for everyone. You don’t argue with a four-year old about why he shouldn’t eat candy for dinner. You don’t punch a mentally handicapped guy even if he punches you first. And you don’t argue when a women tells you she’s only making 80 cents to your dollar. It’s the path of least resistance. You save your energy for more important battles.
A feminist blogger, outraged at the piece, posted an article about it with the title: "Scott Adams to Men’s Rights Activists: Don’t bother arguing with women; they’re like children."
Clearly, that's not what he said in that selection, but it's an excellent example of an analogy gone awry.
The funny bit is that the author (Scott Adams) accidentally provided an example. In a post about gender rights in which he argued that both men and women are discriminated against, he used this phrasing:
The reality is that women are treated differently by society for exactly the same reason that children and the mentally handicapped are treated differently. It’s just easier this way for everyone. You don’t argue with a four-year old about why he shouldn’t eat candy for dinner. You don’t punch a mentally handicapped guy even if he punches you first. And you don’t argue when a women tells you she’s only making 80 cents to your dollar. It’s the path of least resistance. You save your energy for more important battles.
A feminist blogger, outraged at the piece, posted an article about it with the title: "Scott Adams to Men’s Rights Activists: Don’t bother arguing with women; they’re like children."
Clearly, that's not what he said in that selection, but it's an excellent example of an analogy gone awry.