One problem with threads of this form is that I feel inclined to respond even when I don’t expect it to be useful. It would be nice to cultivate norms that allow us to wind these things down somewhat more quickly+gracefully; I think this would improve my willingness to comment here and on the EA forum.
I would like to make a response like “I have objections to this comment, but I don’t think that continuing this conversation in this medium is likely to be the best use of our time” and for you to have the option of responding “I probably have objections to your objections” and for us to leave it at that, letting readers to infer what they will and to continue the discussion if they want to.
I think the problem with saying nothing is that it feels (probably irrationally) like accepting the last word, which is somewhat unpleasant if you have objections you’d like to express.
I think the problem with just making a dismissive comment like this is that it reads more aggressively than I would like it to read; it also reads like an implicit claim that I have the social position or credibility to justify such dismissiveness. But it’s just trying to be a judgment about what disagreements are useful.
For now I might try making the somewhat dismissive response with a link to this discussion:
In such situations I usually offer to agree to disagree. That’s not a put-down, but a clear signal that I don’t think the conversation is going anywhere. It also offers the other side an opportunity for parting words.
And if the other party doesn’t take the hint, you can just shrug, tap, and bail.
One problem with threads of this form is that I feel inclined to respond even when I don’t expect it to be useful. It would be nice to cultivate norms that allow us to wind these things down somewhat more quickly+gracefully; I think this would improve my willingness to comment here and on the EA forum.
I would like to make a response like “I have objections to this comment, but I don’t think that continuing this conversation in this medium is likely to be the best use of our time” and for you to have the option of responding “I probably have objections to your objections” and for us to leave it at that, letting readers to infer what they will and to continue the discussion if they want to.
I think the problem with saying nothing is that it feels (probably irrationally) like accepting the last word, which is somewhat unpleasant if you have objections you’d like to express.
I think the problem with just making a dismissive comment like this is that it reads more aggressively than I would like it to read; it also reads like an implicit claim that I have the social position or credibility to justify such dismissiveness. But it’s just trying to be a judgment about what disagreements are useful.
For now I might try making the somewhat dismissive response with a link to this discussion:
I have objections to this comment, but I don’t think that continuing this conversation in this medium is likely to be the best use of our time
I am interested in whether people think this is a good policy, or something else would work better.
In such situations I usually offer to agree to disagree. That’s not a put-down, but a clear signal that I don’t think the conversation is going anywhere. It also offers the other side an opportunity for parting words.
And if the other party doesn’t take the hint, you can just shrug, tap, and bail.