Once a discussion has degenerated to the level of sloganeering and shouting — bumper sticker warfare — how can it get back to intelligent debate? Try to:

• Pause — slow down the action-reaction, stimulus-response cycle, break out of provocation-retaliation, cease fire to allow time to...
• Listen — actually pay attention to the other side's remarks, and then...
• Reflect — in two senses: echo back what has been heard, to confirm understanding; and think about the opposing viewpoint, thus beginning to...
• Empathize — identify and feel with the "enemy"...
  ...to the point where it's clear that there is no enemy.
  

Tuesday, August 31, 1999 at 17:13:47 (EDT) = 1999-08-31

TopicThinking - TopicPhilosophy

(correlates: BigLessons, IdeaThievery, WarAndCheckers, ...)