Boobsnbuds
Puddly Guppy
Registered: Jul 2000
Location: Official field trip organizer
Posts: 997 |
How to argue
Got this in an email and found it amusing. Reminds of something Paint would write.
>How to argue...
>
>You can win arguments. Simply follow these rules:
>
>*Drink Liquor.
>
>Suppose you're at a party and some hotshot intellectual is expounding on
>the economy of Peru, a subject you know nothing about. If you're drinking
>some health-fanatic drink like grapefruit juice, you'll hang back, afraid
>to display your ignorance, while the hotshot enthralls your date.
>
>But if you drink several large martinis, you'll discover you have STRONG
>VIEWS about the Peruvian economy. You'll be a WEALTH of information.
>You'll argue forcefully, offering searing insights and possibly upsetting
>furniture. People will be impressed. Some may leave the room.
>
>
>*Use meaningless but weighty-sounding words and phrases.
>
>Memorize this list:
> Let me put it this way
> In terms of
> Vis-à-vis
> Per se
> As it were
> Qua
> So to speak
>
>You should also memorize some Latin abbreviations such as "Q.E.D.," "e.g.,"
>and "i.e." These are all short for "I speak Latin, and you do not."
>
>Here's how to use these words and phrases. Suppose you want to say:
>
>"Peruvians would like to order appetizers more often, but they don't have
>enough money."
>
>You never win arguments talking like that. But you WILL win if you say:
>
>"Let me put it this way. In terms of appetizers vis-a-vis Peruvians qua
>Peruvians, they would like to order them more often, so to speak, but they
>do not have enough money per se, as it were. Q.E.D."
>
>Only a fool would challenge that statement.
>
>
>*Use snappy and irrelevant comebacks.
>
>You need an arsenal of all-purpose irrelevant phrases to fire back at your
>opponents when they make valid points.
>
>The best are:
> You're begging the question.
> You're being defensive.
> Don't compare apples and oranges.
> What are your parameters?
>
>This last one is especially valuable. Nobody, other than mathematicians,
>has the vaguest idea what "parameters" means.
>
>Here's how to use your comebacks:
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