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RE: Ad hominems

2014-02-24 23:51:48
     Lloyd, where did you learn your group participation skills?

The IETF!

Lloyd Wood
http://about.me/lloydwood
________________________________________
From: Dave Crocker [dcrocker(_at_)bbiw(_dot_)net]
Sent: 25 February 2014 05:39
To: Wood L  Dr (Electronic Eng)
Cc: ietf(_at_)ietf(_dot_)org
Subject: Re: Ad hominems

On 2/24/2014 9:31 PM, l(_dot_)wood(_at_)surrey(_dot_)ac(_dot_)uk wrote:
This ongoing discussion of what constitutes an ad hominem argument is all 
very well,
but I'd like to point out that I didn't make an ad hominem argument or 
assertion.

I simply asked a question.


The form of your note was not the issue.  It was the substance.  The
substance was directed at a person and was /about/ that person.  It's
the 'about' that made it ad hominem.

By way of example...

If I responded to your note by "just asking a question" such as:

    So, Lloyd, did you ever go to school?

or

    Didn't your school ever teach you about semantics?

or

    Lloyd, where did you learn your group participation skills?

I'd simply be asking a question.

But I'd also be making a pointed ad hominem attack and no reader will
miss that fact.

By contrast, if I sent a note that only contained the above first
paragraph, I'd be focusing on the substance of the issue and would not
be asking or commenting about you as a person.  (Yes, my first paragraph
has the word "your" in it.  The presence of the word doesn't make the
text ad hominem.  The semantics either do or don't.  First paragraph:
doesn't.  Later questions: do.


d/

--
Dave Crocker
Brandenburg InternetWorking
bbiw.net


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