My problem with this is that, from my personal experience (which is like an opinion, sort of), the more people are sure of their opinion as fact the better they'll argue that opinion; or, at least, the more tightly they'll hold to that opinion. I've struggled for a long time with wanting to learn as much about my favorite subjects (history and literature, mainly) as I possibly can, only to encounter the common problem of gradually becoming less secure of what you know as you learn more, once you begin to realize the vast expanses of the subject that are completely unknown to you, while someone who has only scratched the surface may not realize there is more to the iceberg than just what lies above the water, so to speak.
What this means, and what I've encountered, is that, sadly, people with strongly-held opinions and beliefs tend to dominate the conversation, any conversation, particularly when it's online. In a medium when text is the only real option to convey an opinion, those who are secure in theirs and willing to defend it hardest almost always, in my experience, break down the opposition through sheer unshakable belief or simply attacking the other person who is not as secure in a belief they know is based on relatively little evidence.
It's a sad state of affairs, and scary as well when I see it spread from forums to larger sites and that same mentality starting to leak into real life.
My problem with this is that, from my personal experience (which is like an opinion, sort of), the more people are sure of their opinion as fact the better they'll argue that opinion; or, at least, the more tightly they'll hold to that opinion. I've struggled for a long time with wanting to learn as much about my favorite subjects (history and literature, mainly) as I possibly can, only to encounter the common problem of gradually becoming less secure of what you know as you learn more, once you begin to realize the vast expanses of the subject that are completely unknown to you, while someone who has only scratched the surface may not realize there is more to the iceberg than just what lies above the water, so to speak.
What this means, and what I've encountered, is that, sadly, people with strongly-held opinions and beliefs tend to dominate the conversation, any conversation, particularly when it's online. In a medium when text is the only real option to convey an opinion, those who are secure in theirs and willing to defend it hardest almost always, in my experience, break down the opposition through sheer unshakable belief or simply attacking the other person who is not as secure in a belief they know is based on relatively little evidence.
It's a sad state of affairs, and scary as well when I see it spread from forums to larger sites and that same mentality starting to leak into real life.