Discussing politics and other contentious sunjects online feels to me like it's counterproductive these days and even though I try not to get suckered in, I often can't help myself. Usually though I just end up feeling frustrated and sometimes angry at the other person either missing my points or refusing to accept them.

Thinking back to conversations I've had here and previously on Reddit, not only can I not remember an example of me "winning" the discussion and the other person changing their mind or conceding the point, I also cannot think of a time where my mind was changed either.

So have you ever begun a discussion online with someone with a different view point to yours and either you, or they, changed the others mind?

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[–] 3 points 1 month ago

A few times, all of which I remember being with someone who started with a point of view based on ignorance about the topic and changed their mind because they gained new knowledge and understanding. In all of the cases they didn't seem too committed to their point of view because of follow up questions and being engaged by asking for more information in more and more nuanced ways.

One person had the opinion that crime stats showed minorities committed more crimes. I presented something that explained how the stats are based on police behavior and decisions prosecutors make that lead to systemic racism. The real point that made it through was the statistic that black people are pulled over disproportionately during the day compared to night, which shows who is driving plays a part. Stop and frisk being targeted into minority neighborhoods resulting in more stops reinforced the police effect on stats.

But that only worked because they were interested in finding out more. I've never convinced anyone who dug their heels in immediately.

I have changed my opinion on exchanges between other people, which is how I learned about the cause of the bias in police stats. Hopefully I changed a few minds for the better without hearing about it as well.

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