Be advised: this thread is not for serious in-depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.
- 192
- 2
What is this place?
This website is a place for people who want to move past shady thinking and test their ideas in a
court of people who don't all share the same biases. Our goal is to
optimize for light, not heat; this is a group effort, and all commentators are asked to do their part.
The weekly Culture War threads host the most
controversial topics and are the most visible aspect of The Motte. However, many other topics are
appropriate here. We encourage people to post anything related to science, politics, or philosophy;
if in doubt, post!
Check out The Vault for an archive of old quality posts.
You are encouraged to crosspost these elsewhere.
Why are you called The Motte?
A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently,
it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey",
originally identified by
philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial
but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens
this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for
the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired
propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."
On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.
New post guidelines
If you're posting something that isn't related to the culture war, we encourage you to post a thread for it.
A submission statement is highly appreciated, but isn't necessary for text posts or links to largely-text posts
such as blogs or news articles; if we're unsure of the value of your post, we might remove it until you add a
submission statement. A submission statement is required for non-text sources (videos, podcasts, images).
Culture war posts go in the culture war thread; all links must either include a submission statement or
significant commentary. Bare links without those will be removed.
If in doubt, please post it!
Rules
- Courtesy
- Content
- Engagement
- When disagreeing with someone, state your objections explicitly.
- Proactively provide evidence in proportion to how partisan and inflammatory your claim might be.
- Accept temporary bans as a time-out, and don't attempt to rejoin the conversation until it's lifted.
- Don't attempt to build consensus or enforce ideological conformity.
- Write like everyone is reading and you want them to be included in the discussion.
- The Wildcard Rule
- The Metarule
Jump in the discussion.
No email address required.
Notes -
The Good Place is incredible. I wish more shows actually delved into complex philosophical questions, but I suppose it's a niche audience. Also Kristen Bell is super hot.
When I watch Ms. Bell I can't stop thinking about how hot she is. Also one of the many reasons why Forgetting Sarah Marshall is awesome.
Hah, that's my favorite movie! Jason Segal is a fucking gem. You should watch The Muppet Movie and Get Him to the Greek as well if you liked FSM - the latter is actually a kind of sequel in the same universe.
Liked both quite a bit. Had a debate on The 5 year Engagement with my wife last night. Very similar feel in that it took a more realistic view of relationships and grief at them ending/devolving (ironically better than many "serious" relationship movies). But even as a comedy I felt it would have been better if Jason Segel and Emily Blunt hadn't ended up together. I end up feeling more uncomfortable and unhappy at the end of the movie, whereas I've watched FSM at least 6 times at this point (including in Hawaii on vacation).
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link
The Good Place is decent, but anyone thinking of watching should keep in mind that it does bludgeon you over the head with progressive-isms which are immensely hard to ignore. Zero HP Lovecraft, whatever you may think about him, has a pretty good summary of how the ideology is interwoven through the show's plot.
Read the article - well written as always, and agree with most of it. The unredeemable white male character at the end took some very special looking past.
More options
Context Copy link
Nice write up, thanks for the link.
More options
Context Copy link
So... it does, at least in the second to last season. I toughed it out till the final and appreciated it.
Admittedly this is as an atheist who would have been considered socially liberal 12 years ago. I think I'm sensitive to culture war ham-fists and it had bought enough good will by the end to have me grit my teeth and finish.
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link