"Do you know the worst possible way to convince a person to change his mind? If you read psychology — especially the psychology of persuasion — you find that the worst thing you can do is tell people they’re wrong. When you do that, you shut down a chance for discussion. The ego can’t deal with it, in most cases. It hurts. And it keeps people from being able to listen to you, even if they suddenly become convinced that you’re correct. (Dale Carnegie quoted an old line that’s applicable here: “A man convinced against his will is of the same opinion still.”) Let’s look for a minute at how libertarians and anarchists tend to present their persuasive material. If it’s written, it’s very long and very dense (and typically very boring) words that outline the pure logic of a position. If it’s video, it’s most typically a talking head droning on at the camera with the same sort of very rational material. It’s frequently well-done — perfect for use at the next debate tournament. But the Court of Public Opinion has nothing to do with winning debates. It has to do with subtly changing minds and subtly changing hearts."
Posted on: Tue, 18 Jun 2013 02:44:19 +0000
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