>>14386308
i've noticed that people tend to discuss things at the highest level they are capable of
if you are arguing with someone, and you make a truly compelling argument that absolutely crushes their position, they'll just leave the conversation and move on. if you agree with them, they'll just make some vague positive comment like "based" or "omg so brave" or whatever, but they won't write a whole lot more
the best way i've found to get a good conversation out of people (or at least, get them to keep engaging you and keep on winning against them) is to not be so right that your position is completely unassailable, with irrefutable evidence, references, and footnotes, but to have the core of your argument be sound while intentionally having at least one weak point which to the person frantically looking through your text for something to nitpick at, will stand out like a sore thumb. they'll seize on this opportunity and point it out like they've just found the chink in the armor, the minuscule overlooked detail that the whole argument falls apart without, and they'll actually think they've found it. but, to the dispassionate observer who has no emotional investment in who wins, they'll be more convinced by the fact that the most salient point your opposition can bring up is in arguing about minutiae and will accept that the core of your argument is sound (which doesn't happen if your opponent never tries to rebut your argument). this "weak point" can sometimes take the form of incorrect grammar, but it's better to misrepresent statistics (say 13% of blacks commit 75% of violent crime instead of 50%, for example) or to say the wrong person did something, things like that
with this method, you can actually use grammar nazis to your own benefit, string along morons for ages, and all the while to an outside observer look like a fucking genius compared to the idiot who keeps arguing about inane shit instead of attacking the central point of things
of course none of this applies to convincing the sort of person who actually thinks that making grammatical mistakes means you're wrong, but these people are probably won over by tv advertisements and unironically vote so you shouldn't worry about them anyway