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debating skills

Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
are you a natural born debater or have you learnt the skills yourself? What do you think makes a good debate? How do you argue a point effectively?

I suppose this is a wee extension of Becky's thread on advice for the politics forum. I have always had opinions on what's going on in the world, but until recently I've always kept them to myself. So I'm still in the learning process for debating.

Apologies if this thread is a bit incomprehesible, am a bit drunk at time of typing. but I am looking for good advice.

:)

Comments

  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    born to it i guess. though being brought up with politically minded parents who were involved with the local labour party before i was born helps. as does the amount of practis i put in:p
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Re: debating skills
    Originally posted by KoolCat
    are you a natural born debater or have you learnt the skills yourself? :)

    NO, Im a natural hot headed redhead at the moment :D

    Im slowly learning the skills which I have learned from other posters here. Im picking up little things by the way people present their posts, its little things which just stick in my head and one day I will be as good as all the rest :p
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Mmmm, my family has always been political (Involved with the Liberals since whigs) so I guess its in the blood. But I have also educated myself with Politics society, Newsnight, Qustion time, Parliament channel, politics lessons and political reading. Hang around debaters enough and you pick up the skills.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Being a good debater in my view is making logical arguments and attempting to analyse others' arguments logically and rationally. I find it's helpful not to resort to ad hominem attacks (, i.e. attacking the person and not the point they are making).
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by monocrat
    Being a good debater in my view is making logical arguments and attempting to analyse others' arguments logically and rationally. I find it's helpful not to resort to ad hominem attacks (, i.e. attacking the person and not the point they are making).

    :lol::lol:

    But isnt being a good debater replyig to questions with a sentence ? I know a poster who the majority of times uses 2 or 3 word replies and doesnt really answer the question put to them.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by BeckyBoo
    :lol::lol:

    But isnt being a good debater replyig to questions with a sentence ? I know a poster who the majority of times uses 2 or 3 word replies and doesnt really answer the question put to them.

    *uses best 'old tory' voice*
    HEAR! HEAR!
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by Simbelyne
    *uses best 'old tory' voice*
    HEAR! HEAR!

    ;)
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by BeckyBoo
    :lol::lol:

    But isnt being a good debater replyig to questions with a sentence ?

    No.
    I know a poster who the majority of times uses 2 or 3 word replies and doesnt really answer the question put to them.

    I don't.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I agree with ilovebusted. I still try to comment in the Politics forum, but you have to choose your words, and the way you phrase them, really carefully. I've found it interesting reading the Politics posts, have learnt new things, and it's provoked me to think about issues from different points of view.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Useful skills are being able to listen and digest before replying. Quite often I will also do a quick research check on Google before answering.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I don't have debating skills. At all.
    I just have some kind of drive for the discussions I particioate in.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by BlackArab
    I will also do a quick research check on Google before answering.

    Yeh, I agree. I think having strong sources to back up your argument gives it strength and confidence to yourself in what you're saying.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Perhaps you dont have a talent for debating Jacq, but you have the talons for it! ;)
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    i'm just the voice from the street. the voice of the common man.
    and sometimes ...just sometimes ...common sense rules over education.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    .
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    How I love the mocking of education and prospects on these boards.
    No one has said that your voice doesn't count.
    I can't recall people stating "I am educated, therefore I know better", only when they're actually educated in that specific field the discussion is built upon.

    Why do you need to bring in the whole education factor into this?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by Jacqueline the Ripper
    How I love the mocking of education and prospects on these boards.
    No one has said that your voice doesn't count.
    I can't recall people stating "I am educated, therefore I know better", only when they're actually educated in that specific field the discussion is built upon.

    Why do you need to bring in the whole education factor into this?
    i obviously don't put this bit accross very well ...i have three very well educated sisters. that often have little common sense. i wish i'd had a decent education and was in fact heading for one but blew it at an early age through simple hedonism. i do regret it.
    what pisses me off about education is ...some guy gets honours in geography and religous studies say and then end up running a rail network or the health service or such like. most politicians are not educated in what they are actualy doing.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    The highest educated of people, mostly do not have an ounce of common sense. At least within sciences.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by Jacqueline the Ripper
    How I love the mocking of education and prospects on these boards.
    No one has said that your voice doesn't count.
    I can't recall people stating "I am educated, therefore I know better", only when they're actually educated in that specific field the discussion is built upon.

    Why do you need to bring in the whole education factor into this?
    and i was not mocking ...i said ...sometimes ...just sometimes.
    notice that i emphasised the sometimes by repeating it?
    and nowhere did i even suggest that i thought my voice didn't count.
    wake up girl!
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by morrocan roll
    and i was not mocking ...i said ...sometimes ...just sometimes.
    notice that i emphasised the sometimes by repeating it?
    and nowhere did i even suggest that i thought my voice didn't count.
    wake up girl!
    Why did you then feel that you needed to bring education into it?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by Jacqueline the Ripper
    Why did you then feel that you needed to bring education into it?
    i don't see what your after here at all ...it was a very simple statement saying that sometimes ...just sometimes, common sense prevails over education. what is your problem?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    You're the one to bring it up all the time, I am wondering why you feel the need to do so, when you say it has no relevance?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I cant debate. I can argue which passes for the same thing on this forum.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by Jacqueline the Ripper
    The highest educated of people, mostly do not have an ounce of common sense. At least within sciences.

    isn't that what Rolly said? :confused:
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by KoolCat
    isn't that what Rolly said? :confused:

    I was joking.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by Jacqueline the Ripper
    I was joking.
    as usual your not making much sense. you never actualy say anything about anything do you.
    afraid your beliefs and ideas might be ridiculed? we know your a right winger. we don't know why.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Stated in the other thread, and I'll do it again, read my previous posts. Filled with reasonings for why I choose to believe as I do.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by monocrat
    Being a good debater in my view is making logical arguments and attempting to analyse others' arguments logically and rationally. I find it's helpful not to resort to ad hominem attacks (, i.e. attacking the person and not the point they are making).

    Being a good debator is backing up your views with plausable evidence. It's also listening to other people's points of views and showing empathy on the odd occasion.

    As for what Mr Roll says about education, I've met Oxford graduates and still I can get a better conversation from a binman. Life is what makes us and some people are way too sheltered.

    I dunno if I'm good at debating, my laptop doesn't like me much and shuts down when it likes, losing most of my posts. Now I'm not the most intelligent person, nor the most educated but I apply what I've learnt both through life and academics and it annoys me when people don't back up what they believe... why? Because it makes the debate meaningless and just... dumb?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by MoonRat
    Being a good debator is backing up your views with plausable evidence. It's also listening to other people's points of views and showing empathy on the odd occasion.

    Definitely, I think listening to other people is a must - and actually reading their posts properly, without jumping to conclusions about what you think they're saying.
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