The internet promised to be humanity’s greatest forum for exchanging ideas. Instead, it became a battlefield where bad actors exploit our good faith to undermine the very foundations of productive discourse. Here’s why your instinct for reasonable debate might be working against you.
The Three Laws of Internet Discourse
I propose three fundamental laws that explain why traditional debate tactics fail online:
1. To debate a subject is to concede that the subject is debatable.
The Edwards Laws of Online Discourse
2. To reason with a person is to concede that the person is reasonable.
3. To ask for evidence of a claim is to concede that the claim might be true.
These aren’t just abstract principles – they’re weapons being used against you every day in digital spaces.
The First Law: Don’t Debate Your Values
Some things aren’t up for debate. Your humanity. Your right to exist. Your fundamental dignity. When you engage in debates about these topics, you signal that you believe these rights are negotiable.
Bad actors understand this. They don’t want to change your mind – they want to move the window of acceptable discourse until your core values become “just another opinion.”
The Second Law: Don’t Reason With Trolls
“Let’s discuss this rationally,” they say. “I’m just asking questions,” they claim. But engaging with trolls as if they’re reasonable people acting in good faith only serves to legitimize their tactics.
Someone who starts a conversation by questioning your basic humanity isn’t interested in genuine dialogue. They’re interested in wearing you down.
The Third Law: Don’t Be Credulous
When someone makes a truly outrageous claim and you ask for evidence, you’ve already lost. Why? Because you’ve implicitly acknowledged that if they provide convincing evidence, you’d accept their position.
Some claims don’t deserve the dignity of evidence-based refutation. “Prove to me that the earth is round” is not a request that warrants a scholarly response.
How to Actually Fight Back
- Recognize bad faith actors quickly and don’t engage on their terms
- State your values clearly without defending them as debatable positions
- Save your energy for genuine dialogue with people who accept your basic humanity
- Remember that not every provocation requires a response
The internet is a powerful tool for genuine discourse with real people seeking understanding, but you must learn to recognize when debate itself becomes a weapon used against you.
The paradox of tolerance remains: To maintain a truly open forum for ideas, we must be intolerant of those who would exploit that openness to destroy it.
Remember: Your values aren’t up for debate. Your existence isn’t a discussion topic. And you don’t owe anyone evidence of your right to dignity. Choose your battles wisely.
THE INTERNET IS SCARY 