Published on July 10, 2025 7:25 PM GMT
Note: This is a living document. It will be refined over time as new persuasive arguments come to my attention. I invite you to share your thoughts in the comments; they will most certainly be taken into consideration.
The following are a few principles that I believe people should keep in mind as they try to take part in a debate in a rational way. Specifically, I will assume the objective of the debate is epistemic (i.e., acquiring new knowledge) and not instrumental (i.e., persuading others for ulterior motives).
You will find that many are virtues which any rationalist should hold dear, or otherwise, lessons which you are probably already familiar with. I claim no originality in what follows, just hopefully a useful compression and something to glance at next time you find yourself taking part in a debate.
1. Open-mindedness
No debate can be productive if people are not willing to change their minds. A debate is a process of discovery, not a process of confirmation. It's a sharing of knowledge, not a battle for who is right. If the participants come in with the intention of defending their beliefs against all opposition, nothing will move them to see otherwise. And the debate will have failed from the start.
Unfortunately, humans have evolved to defend their beliefs fiercely, especially political ones, as this could mean life or death in the ancestral environment. Power, reputation, and influence have selected for persuasiveness over open-mindedness. This is so ingrained that it persists even in arguments where there is nothing to gain, where one would clearly benefit more from learning than from being right. Even in the age of science, very few people genuinely feel comfortable changing their minds openly and swiftly in the face of convincing evidence.
I'm afraid I have no solution to offer for this. But at the very least, I invite you to be honest with yourself and to stare your resistance in the eyes. Ask yourself: "Do I already have an opinion on this matter? Do I want it to be true? Am I willing to change my mind if I am shown sufficient evidence? What would that evidence look like?".
If you find yourself admitting that nothing will move you to change your mind, then it means you are not ready to take part in this debate. That's fine: we all have beliefs we hold dear, and doors we would rather not open. You can rest easy in your increased knowledge of yourself.
But if you find yourself ready to be proven wrong, then strap on your seatbelt and join the ride. If you are lucky, you might be proven wrong. For remember: the one who was correct all along, learned nothing and gained nothing. The one who was wrong and changed their mind, gained everything. They are the true winners.
2. Empiricism
The further away you move from experience, the more you are debating about shadows and whispers.
No rational debate can exist about topics that cannot be unequivocally defined, amongst its participants, in terms of either sensory experience or mathematics. Only these two can hold still as the ground of the debate shifts.
Everything else, every other language or symbolism, will collapse into a recursive cycle of definitions and interpretations. Thus, people debate the definition of words and the definitions of the words used in the definitions. And so forth, until the debate turns into a stream of consciousness of meaningless ramblings.
Ask: "Is there a mathematical representation of the question we are posing? Or can we unequivocally agree on what sensory experience corresponds to this or that answer being correct?"
If neither can be satisfied, there is no way to conclude the debate. You might still find it entertaining and educational, but if no agreement can be found, the debate can never truly end.
3. Focus
As the debate flows on, our minds are inevitably attracted by what we find interesting or what sparks a reaction in us.
But time is limited, and a debate is a ship with a clear destination. You must make sure to regularly wipe your mind of side concerns, ideas, and disagreements that don't relate to the topic at hand. Keep the primary question at the centre of your focus and never lose sight of it.
If you disagree with a statement that is not relevant to the debate, you must let it go.
If you find a statement intriguing and your curiosity encourages you to follow it, but it is not relevant to the argument, you must let it go.
The kind of directionless exploration that is wonderful for creativity or learning, works very poorly in a debate.
A debate is a ship with a clear destination, and the journey is rarely an easy one. There is no time for diversions.
4. Fairness
As you enter the sea of arguments and hypotheses, make sure to catch yourself following a pleasant wind. We are wired to believe that which feels nice, in some way or another.
Perhaps this conclusion fits better with your existing beliefs. Perhaps this other one requires you to admit some uncomfortable truth about yourself.
But you can't play favourites. You are the judge of all arguments, but the advocate of none. As a judge, you must be fair and impartial. Arguments must be judged for their merits, their validity, and their soundness. You can't be wooed by their seductiveness or repulsed by their starkness.
And if you catch your heart fluttering at one fact more than another, steady yourself. It is never too late to rebalance yourself. But if you don't, beware: you can't fool the universe, for what is true is already so; you can only fool yourself.
5. Simplicity & Precision
In your arguments, be concise, be simple. If you can lighten your burden, you must do so.
Complexity is often used as a smokescreen for vagueness and uncertainty. Additional details are weaponised to give a sense of realism to an otherwise unconvincing thesis. But once again, this is your brain working against itself, trying to persuade others by fooling yourself.
Instead, dig deeper. Ask yourself the questions that others would ask of you. Attack your beliefs at their weakest points. Strip away the outer layers and try to reach the core of your argument. Be as precise as possible. Be as concise as possible. This is both a service to others and to yourself and your own comprehension of the topic.
Refine and hone your argument like a blacksmith hones a blade. When the moment comes to deliver it, you won't pierce the armour with a hundred pebbles, but with a single arrow.
6. Goodwill
If it is humans you are debating, be kind.
Our marvellous ability to empathise is unfortunately quite limited. We can only judge what we see, but what we see is not all there is.
People come from all walks of life, all kinds of experiences, backgrounds, genomes, models of the world, days at work, family circumstances, and random electrical propagations in their nervous systems.
Some will, inevitably, enrage you. But, safe of defending yourself from physical harm, rage can do nothing for you. It will cloud your judgment and ruin your mood.
Instead, try to understand before trying to be understood. If a bridge can be built, take responsibility for building it. If you think others are not behaving rationally, help them do so (or try to understand why they don't want to).
Being rational is a superpower. Making those around you rational is some god-tier shit.
Discuss
