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Tactics (Ping list)
Townhall.com ^ | April 29, 2016 | Mike Adams

Posted on 04/29/2016 5:00:50 AM PDT by Kaslin

It is beyond dispute that the left is winning the current culture war and doing so by a landslide. In response to this reality I’ve heard many conservatives say we just need to start making better arguments for our positions. Nothing could be further from the truth. We are not losing because our arguments are inferior. We are losing because of tactics rather than substance. Put simply, the left has learned how to do two things: 1) Control the language in the national debate 2) Get their ideas disseminated and accepted without any evidentiary basis.

There is one Christian apologist who understood this problem long before anyone else. His name is Greg Koukl and he is president of the California based apologetics group “Stand to Reason.” Through his cogent writings, Greg has taught me a valuable lesson that each and every culture warrior needs to know: When someone attacks your ideas or tries to push a false idea on you, start asking questions before you try to make your case.

This advice proved helpful to me when I was recently attacked by a friend who holds contrary political views. Knowing that I teach a course called “First Amendment and Crime,” he suddenly hit me with this accusatory question, which I found to be somewhat insulting: “How do you control your bias when you teach a class like that?”

As someone who has long criticized professors who indoctrinate rather than teach I did not appreciate my friend’s suggestion that I was “one of them.” In fact, it irritated me. So I took a deep breath and asked the first question in a series of three questions Koukl recommends to help get back in the drivers’ seat whenever we are caught off guard in any argument:

1. What do you mean by that?

2. How did you arrive at that conclusion?

3. Have you ever considered the following?

Notice the brilliance of Koukl’s technique. Writing for an audience of people who subscribe to a Christian worldview, he’s telling them to hold off on presenting their affirmative case (in question #3) until they have done two things. First, make sure your opponent understands his terms (question #1). Next, find out whether his argument has any evidentiary basis (question #2).

In the case of my friend who accused me of engaging in biased indoctrination in the classroom, I simply asked, “What do you mean by bias?” Surprisingly, he was able to respond with an accurate definition of bias. To paraphrase him slightly, he defined bias as “only teaching or presenting material that conforms to your beliefs.”

Since he made it through the first question I then asked, “How did you arrive at the conclusion that I am a biased teacher?” His response was fatal to his argument. To once again paraphrase him slightly, he said, “I just assumed you were biased because you’re so conservative.” This set up the kill shot, which was delivered by asking, “Have you ever considered that accusing a person of bias without any evidentiary basis is itself a form of bias?”

It should go without saying that he had no response other than turning red and swallowing nervously. He was obviously embarrassed when he lost control of the argument by having his own terminology used against him. There’s a lesson in that – particularly for those arguing unpopular positions in the debate over so-called gay rights.

Koukl’s three-question technique, which he calls the Colombo tactic, was something one of my former students needed the other day when a gay rights issue (concerning North Carolina’s HB2) came up in the workplace. While at work, she got an email that said the following (this is a paraphrased and condensed version):

Dear (company name withheld) employees:

Recently, there has been much controversy over North Carolina’s HB2, which promotes bigotry and intolerance. We are writing today to reaffirm our commitment to inclusion and to applaud the efforts of companies such as PayPal that have decided to respond aggressively to these basic violations of human rights and human decency. Our company is steadfastly opposed to measures such as HB2 and we intend to respond appropriately in the near future.

My former student’s co-workers began responding to the email in a predictable fashion. They all supported their company’s stance against HB2. But my former student had a different view. So what could she do? And more generally what should people with her views do in response to a similar email? Of course, applying the Colombo tactic is the only reasonable response. And here is how a model response would look:

1. What do you mean by “bigotry and intolerance?” The first response should force the proponent to define the terms he uses in the email. Assuming he could do so the next question would be easy.

2. How did you arrive at the conclusion that HB2 promotes bigotry and intolerance? This question will reveal whether the opponent of HB2 actually read the bill before condemning it. This provides a perfect set up for the kill question.

3. Have you ever considered the possibility that PayPal’s decision to do business with five nations that execute people for the “crime” of homosexuality promotes bigotry and intolerance? And have you also considered the possibility that applauding PayPal for its refusal to do business with North Carolina, a state that does not criminalize homosexuality, undermines our professed commitment to diversity and inclusion?

Game over, ladies and gentlemen. There simply is no way for the anti-HB2 crusaders to recover from that one. Of course, there is the possibility that such an exchange could cause you to win the argument but lose your job. But that brings up another issue altogether. It will be the subject of a future column.

In the meantime, I recommend clicking here and reading Tactics immediately.



TOPICS: Culture/Society; Editorial; US: North Carolina
KEYWORDS: arguing; bathroom; bathroombill; frontpage; itsnotthateasy; tactics
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1 posted on 04/29/2016 5:00:50 AM PDT by Kaslin
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To: Kaslin

I think that kind of bathroom should be like some of the far eastern ones I’ve seen. Two footprints and a hole in the floor.


2 posted on 04/29/2016 5:08:30 AM PDT by Gaffer
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To: Kaslin

Rule number one in any debate....define the terms


3 posted on 04/29/2016 5:10:11 AM PDT by Nifster (I see puppy dogs in the clouds)
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To: Tax-chick

Bttt.


4 posted on 04/29/2016 5:15:56 AM PDT by Tax-chick (What do you think it means?)
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To: Gaffer
I think that kind of bathroom should be like some of the far eastern ones I’ve seen. Two footprints and a hole in the floor.

That kind of bathroom is used a lot in public places in Europe, as well.

All I can say is, women do not have good aim...

5 posted on 04/29/2016 5:16:09 AM PDT by exDemMom (Current visual of the hole the US continues to dig itself into: http://www.usdebtclock.org/)
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To: Kaslin

I like that tactic. I wish I could think faster on my feet, but, unless I am talking about a topic I know really really well (like the subject of my PhD), the only way I can employ such a tactic is through the written medium.


6 posted on 04/29/2016 5:18:12 AM PDT by exDemMom (Current visual of the hole the US continues to dig itself into: http://www.usdebtclock.org/)
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To: Kaslin

Read David Horowitz’s “Art of Political War and Other Radical Pursuits”. An eye opener.


7 posted on 04/29/2016 5:24:39 AM PDT by dware (I don't care what bathroom they use, as long as it's in the nuthouse, where they belong)
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To: Kaslin
Game over, ladies and gentlemen. There simply is no way for the anti-HB2 crusaders to recover from that one.

Not quite. Liberalism is inconsistent and that is one of its strengths. Liberals are free to a apply their own twisted sense of logic any which way they choose, even if it's crazy inconsistent. If you oppose them, you are always the one who is a bigot, racist, etc. It is your mere opposition that makes you so and has nothing to do with logic or consistency.

8 posted on 04/29/2016 5:33:48 AM PDT by randita
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To: Kaslin

The Colombo tactic, I like that!

“Oh, just one more thing ...”

:)


9 posted on 04/29/2016 5:42:09 AM PDT by NonValueAdded ("He's a winner in the process of winning. People like that." Scott Adams)
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To: randita

Good point. Bear in mind that marxists do not feel obliged to credit Reason when arguing, unless doing so advances their cause. If they lose the argument to logic — which they often do — they ignore the logic and just yell louder, stomp their feet, and burn some cars. Like children, it’s not about doing what’s right or sound; it’s about doing what they WANT to do.

Logic alone is not enough to defeat the Left, but it does serve to expose the paucity of their ideology.


10 posted on 04/29/2016 5:44:05 AM PDT by IronJack
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To: exDemMom

What do you mean by that? ;-)


11 posted on 04/29/2016 5:49:42 AM PDT by mad_as_he$$
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To: mad_as_he$$

Lol!

:)


12 posted on 04/29/2016 5:53:00 AM PDT by exDemMom (Current visual of the hole the US continues to dig itself into: http://www.usdebtclock.org/)
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To: Kaslin
I'm in a feisty mood this morning. Fridays are casual days, which means t-shirt and jeans. I'm wearing one of my favorite shirts today, emblazoned with "Atlas Shrugged, now nonfiction."

I expect less than 5 of my 30 coworkers to even have a clue as to the message. I've never been in an office where my coworkers were not inquisitive, or particularly well read. I guess I'm the crazy old coot here. lol

13 posted on 04/29/2016 5:56:16 AM PDT by Night Hides Not (Remember the Alamo! Remember Goliad! Remember Mississippi! My vote went to Cruz.)
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To: Kaslin
These are good tactics, assuming that your opponents are actually motivated by what they profess to be.

I do not think leftists are. They will just change to another subject.

However, he who gets to ask the questions has the power. Just ask any criminal suspect in the hands of the police.

14 posted on 04/29/2016 6:11:03 AM PDT by chesley (The right to protest is not the right to disrupt.)
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To: chesley; All

Most of the time you will not be up against a well read, hard core “progressive”.

The vast majority of “progressives” have never really thought out what they profess. They are just following what they percieve as the “popular” position.


15 posted on 04/29/2016 6:18:30 AM PDT by marktwain
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To: Kaslin; eaglesnest1; EternalVigilance; ALOHA RONNIE; MountainFlower; wagglebee; neverdem; ...

Well worth a read by all here —

A rare ping to the mother-of-all-ping-lists list.

And don’t forget to read Psalm 2 now and then.


16 posted on 04/29/2016 6:21:15 AM PDT by The Spirit Of Allegiance (Public Employees: Honor Your Oaths! Defend the Constitution from Enemies--Foreign and Domestic!)
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To: Kaslin

I have long been a fan of Greg Koukl - his book “Tactics” is excellent.


17 posted on 04/29/2016 6:26:53 AM PDT by circlecity
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To: The Spirit Of Allegiance

Thanks .....


18 posted on 04/29/2016 6:28:12 AM PDT by Squantos ( Be polite, be professional, but have a plan to kill everyone you meet ...)
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To: The Spirit Of Allegiance

Sometimes works on people who are open to debate.

Our foes are about seizing power, not winning debates.


19 posted on 04/29/2016 6:29:42 AM PDT by Pelham (Trump/Tsoukalos 2016 - vote the great hair ticket)
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To: The Spirit Of Allegiance

BTTT


20 posted on 04/29/2016 6:32:19 AM PDT by E.G.C.
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