I love the idea of us talking more about #MediaLiteracy in general, and critical thinking touchstones.
I used to buy into the lie of "rational" debate, but it's much more effective to remember that this isn't how humans develop most of their views - or change them. (That said, some people are more *aware* of their emotional & cultural inputs than others, which makes discussion easier.)
Easy queries today, then:
What's your favourite fallacy?
And what's the fallacy you struggle with the most?
Not a fallacy, but an attitude?
I have encountered a few people who consider fiction to be lies, and thus silly at best or evil. A variation are those who are fine with fiction that's realistic and positive, but anything horror or occult or even too imaginative is sinful or literally cursed. They have been mostly conservative religious Black folks. It's definitely a cultural thing.
@tyghebright @MLClark I feel like someone who claims fiction is lies is either ignorant or some sort of zealot.
The first time I encountered it, I had no idea how to respond. It was a fellow student worker at the library. It was like some revelation to her, that all these books were "made up". Like, she'd previously thought they were real? It was weird. And she was the person who leaned most into fiction being "lies". But I've run into a lot of people who see it as misleading and silly, and who only read non-fiction and "inspirational" work.
@tyghebright @AskTheDevil @MLClark When I lived in Macon, GA, a pastor wrote a letter to the editor of the local newspaper saying that the kids' show Barney was evil because it forced children to conjure things from their imaginations that weren't real. And I met an English professor who had grown up in KY who as a child was only allowed to read the Bible and that was meant to be read literally. Fundamentalism has a lot to answer for.
@Notokay @tyghebright @MLClark Oh, I've met people. I used to give them ghost sickness just to put them out of my misery, but I'm more civilized now.
To be fair, most of me is _made_ of story. I am a creature of the noosphere, the logosphere. Things that hate and poison stories are kind of like a disease to beings like me.
@tyghebright @MLClark I've always been amazed that there are some people who can both be avid readers and not like stories.