Unfortunately, when someone utters something in conversation that is wildly divergent from reason, they make the claim in mere seconds. A proper rebuttal, though, can take paragraphs of content to dredge up facts and compile reasoning to refute the reckless assertion. Spouting nonsense is much easier than attempting to convincingly invalidate it. Many people avoid contradicting someone with doubtful assertions because either they don’t want to be disrespectful or they’re afraid to push the matter.

As a result, fools sermonizing nonsense often wander off with a false sense of victory because nobody pushed back. We all have friends and family that somehow went into the weeds and picked up some wild ideas.

One way to deal with fools spouting nonsense is to turn around and leave. Other times a gentle change of the subject can lead someone to a better topic. To expect someone to have an epiphany about some closely held yet nonsensical notion leading to a higher plane of awareness standing right there is unreasonable. Most of us fools will stand our ground and argue. Yes, that includes me. Despite being in a hole, I also have been known to keep digging the hole, though not so much anymore.

Wherein I digress.

College is a great place to pick up debating skills. My research group in grad school was a quite assertive and international group of people. Today most of them are either full professors or VPs of R&D at some pharma company. Since I decided against pharma early on, I was thankfully able to avoid the east coast. At that time there wasn’t much non-biopharma elsewhere. To thrive, I need to be around some interesting topography like here in the west.

In grad school I learned to pitch back as much guff as I received. By assertive I don’t mean quarrelsome, usually. I mean debate. Knowledge and reasoning had to be there, as it should be. Most of these “energetic discussions” were at the chalkboard where we preposed reaction mechanisms by pushing electrons. Fermented beverages were often present. Since it was a natural product and stereochemistry group, we had to be able to render our chalk structures in pseudo “3-D.” Our research professor was a master at this. He could draw complicated alkaloids and diastereomeric transition states with chalk to show stereochemical mechanisms as well as anyone.

Back to the BS people spew.

Back to the topic of the post. I’ve lost much of the desire I once had to debate people who espouse outright stupidity. An example would be a MAGA follower. My working theory is that once someone has tasted the Trump Koolaid, they are likely lost for good. They’ll live their lives out as Trumpers and go to their graves that way. Some Trumpers do have a revelation and recover, but most don’t.

Attempting to educate MAGA people for the sake of truth and accuracy is a waste of time. Is this a pessimistic view of life? Yes.