Old Style: Listen carefully and look for issues on which there may be agreement as well as disagreement. Be prepared for a discussion in which both sides are willing to be persuaded.
New Style: Quickly determine if the person is in your camp. If that's not the case, then attack the person's values, knowledge, sincerity, intelligence, and/or identity. Be prepared to launch further attacks. The merit of the other person's argument is not worthy of consideration because the other side's positions are inherently evil, racist, ignorant, and/or dumb.
Old Style: Try to find common ground.
New Style: There is no common ground. If you look for it, then there may be something wrong with you.
Old Style: Concede weak points.
New Style: Concede nothing. Your side has no weak points and the other side is evil.
Old Style: Defend your position.
New Style: Defend nothing. Stay on the offensive.
Old Style: Strive for logical consistency.
New Style: Logic is a trap and it is not a requirement for your side. All evidence favoring the opposing viewpoints is false and irrelevant.
Old Style: The same rules should apply to both sides.
New Style: Your side doesn't have to follow rules. Rules only apply to the other side.
Old Style: Tell the truth.
New Style: There is no objective truth. Tell your truth. Either ignore whatever the other side calls truth or use it as a snare to trip up their arguments. Never concede that any "truth" weakens your side.
Welcome to the new world.
[Photo by icons8 team at Unsplash]
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