Arguing effectively
How to Argue Effectively

I argue very well. Ask any of my remaining friends. I can win an argument on any topic, against any opponent. People know this and steer clear of me at parties. Often, as a sign of their great respect, they don't even invite me. You too can win arguments. Simply follow these rules:

-=- Make things up.

Suppose, in the Peruvian economy argument, you are trying to prove that Peruvians are underpaid, a position you base solely on the fact that YOU are underpaid, and you are not going to let a bunch of Peruvians be better off. DON'T say: "I think Peruvians are underpaid." Say instead: "The average Peruvian's salary in 2004 dollars adjusted for the revised tax base is $1,452.81 per annum, which is $836.07 before the mean gross poverty level."

NOTE: Always make up exact figures.

If an opponent asks you where you got your information, make THAT up too. Say: "This information comes from Dr. Hovel T. Moon's study for the Buford Commission published on May 9, 2005. Didn't you read it?" Say this in the same tone of voice you would use to say, "You left your soiled underwear in my bathroom."

-=- Use meaningless but weighty-sounding words and phrases.

Memorize this list:

Let me put it this way

In terms of

Vis-a-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 don't."

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 to oranges.

What are your parameters?

This last one is especially valuable. Nobody (other than engineers and policy wonks) has the vaguest idea what "parameters" means.

Don't forget the classic: YOU'RE SO LINEAR.

Here's how to use your comebacks:

You say: As Abraham Lincoln said in 1873...

Your opponent says: Lincoln died in 1865.

You say: You're begging the question.

You say: Liberians, like most Asians...

Your opponent says: Liberia is in Africa.

You say: You're being defensive.

-=- Compare your opponent to Adolf Hitler.

This is your heavy artillery, for when your opponent is obviously right and you are spectacularly wrong. Bring Hitler up subtly.

Say, "That sounds suspiciously like something Adolf Hitler might say," or "You certainly do remind me of Adolf Hitler."

Sniglets - Words That Should Exist
Words That Should Exist But Don't==================================
 Snackmosphere - The 95% air inside bags of potato chips.  Ohnosecond - That very short moment in time during which you realize that you have pressed the wrong key and deleted hours, days, or weeks of work.  Eiffelites - Gangly people sitting in front of you at the movies who, no matter which direction you lean in, follow suit.  Meganegabar - The line you put on a check to prevent someone else from adding "and a million dollars."  Frust - The small line of debris that refuses to be swept onto the dust pan and keeps backing a person across the room until he finally decides to give up and sweep it under the rug.  Petrophobic - One who is embarrassed to undress in front of a household pet.  Snork - To spew what you're drinking or chewing in a fit of sudden laughter.  Cylences - long gaps in a phone conversation that occur because one person is also reading email, IMing or shopping online.  Accordianated - Being able to drive and re-fold a road map at the same time.  Exhaustipated - Being so tired that when you try to speak, nothing comes out right.  Testlosterone - The hormone that prevents men from stopping and asking for directions.  Refunable – Something you enjoyed so much you’d do it again.  Treeware - Documents made out of paper, as opposed to electronic documents.  Disconfect - To sterilize the piece of candy you dropped on the floor by blowing on it, somehow assuming this will remove all the germs.  Newtrons - The magnetized particles that amazingly hold Fig Newtons together.  Prairiedogged - The feeling of helplessness you get when co-workers in neighboring cubicles constantly pop their heads up to ask you stupid questions.  Aqualibrium - The point where the stream of drinking fountain water is at its perfect height, thus relieving the drinker from (A) having to suck the nozzle, or (B) squirting themself in the eye/ear.  Blamestorming - Sitting around in a group, discussing why a deadline was missed or a project failed and who was responsible.  Elecelleration - The mistaken notion that the more you press an elevator button the faster it will arrive.  Mallmanac - In a mall, the giant maze with blocks and numbers on it, otherwise known as the "Directory".  Hereoglyph - A little stick figure on a mallmanac that tells where you are.  Peppier - The waiter at a fancy restaurant whose sole purpose seems to be walking around asking diners if they want ground pepper.  Phonesia - The affliction of dialing a phone number and forgetting whom you were calling just as they answer.  Aeroma - The odor emanating from an exercise room after an aerobics class.  Dimp - A person who insults you in a cheap department store by asking, "Do you work here?"  Dessertification - The act of eating less than the entire meal, in order to "save room for dessert".  Kirby - A Small but repulsive piece of food prominently attached to a person's face or clothing.  Zen mail - an email message that arrives with no text in it.  Klong - The sudden overwhelming feeling of fear and panic when you feel that everything is going well and you have plenty of time and you suddenly remember there was someplace else VERY important that you are supposed to be RIGHT NOW, and it's nobody's fault but your own that you aren't there.  Snee - A sneeze that doesn't completely execute. You feel your nose tingling and you start inhaling, anticipating the forceful thrust of air and saliva that is expected, but it never materializes.