Alright, this section is sort of special and has some rules that don't necessarily apply elsewhere. While
arguing debating, please keep these in mind. Using them will just make it more enjoyable for everyone.
1 - Ad Hominem: "Ad Hominem" arguments, derived from "Argumentum Ad Hominem" which means "argument to the man", is one of the most re-occuring problems in most debates that I've seen. Basically it is an argument that has no logic behind it and is just an attack on the opponent. Such an argument is NOT valid, and can/will be ignored or removed.
In depth, what an ad hominem argument usually consists of is that someone says something, but they have something questionable about them, therefore their argument is deemed invalid.
Example:
"You're opinion on legalizing marijuana is invalid because you smoked pot".
This is not true. In the example, smoking pot may have given them a bias towards their cause, but all that means is that they think they're right. It doesn't make what they say wrong. There are also other forms which are more attack form than others, and really have nothing to do with the argument
Example:
"You're wrong because you're an idiot!"
While someone's low intelligence may lead to them saying something untrue, it does not mean everything they say is false.
2- Circular Logic: Basically, it's saying things like "Y is true because X is, and X is true because Y is." and other things along those lines. These aren't valid arguments, and really only prove that you can formulate complete sentences. Don't do it.
3 - Lack of proof: That's just not right. Saying things like "I am right because of an invisible, unobservable, unnamed force that makes everything I say true". I mean, come on! You don't really need to
prove it, but you have to be able to back up your claims. Don't say "I'm right, you're wrong and that's the truth.". Quite frankly, that's NOT the truth. You should always be going along the lines of "I'm right because of blah blah blah". Be sure to avoid the previous two point while doing this though.
4 - Read everything: Don't just jump into an argument and throw your view in. Read the rest of the posts. I know, sometimes there can be some long ones, but it's just REALLY irritating when someone jumps in while the discussion is in full swing and simply restates something that's either been proven wrong or already stated. If you don't want to read everything, then you shouldn't post.
5 - Don't re-create topics: In this board, old topics CAN be picked up again if there are new points on one side. Before making a topic, check too see that it's not already there. If it is, just post there. If the old topic was locked, then don't start it again without permission from a mod or something. Odds are it was locked because it broke into a flame war, because one side was defeated beyond recovery, or because it shouldn't have been made in the first place.
6 - RELIGION: Alright, there are a couple of things here...
A) I want to see NO evangelism here. That means no religion is the "right" religion, no religion is better than another, and no one should try convert anyone to their religion. And never, under any circumstance, attack another person's religion.
B) Religious text is NOT a citable reference, and not to be used as fact. For example, if you are discussing murder, you cannot say that it is wrong because "God said so in His 10 Commandments!". That's all good for those of you who are christian/jewish and follow the Old Testament, but what about Atheists? Sure, they probably don't believe in murder, but they don't believe in your God either and to them, that's about as valid to them as saying "The purple polka-dotted elephants told me that a trampoline is a divine artifact.". It just doesn't work for everyone. So, if religion were to be used as a valid argument then I could make my own religion that proves my beliefs beause the Great and Mighty Cheese-Steak has proclaimed it so, and that's just not right.
C) Although religion is not to be used as an argument, it itself can be debated. For example, one could debate the interpretation of a certain passage in the Bible, or the validity of a certain story (the Noah's Ark story is always fun!). So long as you don't go against Rule 6A, then the topic will probably be allowed to continue.
7 - Politics: Alright, this is almost as touchy as religion, so I ask that you follow pretty much the same rules as #6, only replacing "Religion" with "Political Party". It's practically the same thing. People believe in their party. Their party has certain beliefs other parties don't, and they try to enforce these beliefs on other people. Face it, politics are practically today's religion, so again, be careful.
8 - Don't take it too seriously: We want this to be a place where people that enjoy debating can do so peacefully. So, even though you may feel strongly about a certain topic, don't take what people say to heart. Instead, just laugh it off and throw your opinion back into the ring. When you have a friendly debate where no one gets truly angry at the other side, it can be a lot of fun. Trust me, I've been in a couple. To help enforce this, I suggest doing things like commending the opposite sides on a job well done. If someone has just made a long post and proved his point beyond a shadow of a doubt or disproved most of yours, instead of saying "YOU !@#$%! YOU'RE WRONG!!!", say something like "Wow! Good job! I'll be back with more to shut you down though
". And yes, the smileys can make all the difference.
9. Please refrain from using senseless, offensive language. IE. Swearwords. If you can't show enough self-control to refrain from using these, then you may not be mature enough to handle this section.
10. Refrain from using straw man arguements.
Example: Person A: I think God is real. (X)
Person B: God is omnipotent. (Y)
Person B: If God is omnipotent, he could prove himself to us as being real but he doesn't so he isn't real.
Basically, it's taking someone's statement and using it against them in a completely irrelevant matter.
Example 2: Say you are debating 'abortion', and you group those against abortion as the same. Thus when one person slips in their words, you credit the statement to the entire group.
So, all-in-all, keep it clean, nothing below the belt and wait in your corners until the bell.
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