site banner
naraburns  nihil supernum  2yr ago (text post)   3051 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for October 2, 2022

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

7
Top Bottom Old Controversial Comments
Jump in the discussion.

No email address required.

If you do not consider the UK Europe, Germany is probably the wokest country in the continent.

I can't really confirm this since I haven't traveled enough recently, but it certainly feels like we're taking it as seriously as we, in our usual dogmatic way, can.

And in my own social circles being openly un-woke means that a dwindling number of people are still willing to even talk to me. Lots of former contrarians also switched camps and now demand conformism on issues ranging from being anti-free-market to anti-trump to pro-mandate to pro-LGWTF, and taking the wrong side in any argument has made those the last arguments anyone would have with me. Sorry for the blogpost, I'm sad.

I have recently realised this due to German immigrants to the Netherlands(!!) complaining about the unwokeness of the country and falling over each other to use the latest woke language inventions that even Dutch people don’t know about. They seem to be pursuing this new religion with the methodical zeal typical of Germans. It was all very bizarre.

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


Recommended Posts And Communities

Recommended Realtime Chats