Don't Fight About Fighting

Harris describes the idea of countering as pointing out shortcomings and arguing with an author not just for arguments sake but only if your purpose is to add something or give an insight of your own. The example he opens with reminds me of times when I have actually had fights with my siblings about whether or not we were in a fight. Its completely useless and that is exactly what Harris is saying; you need to have a purpose for pointing out the flaws in another’s work, other than the fact you believe yourself to be smarter and want to prove them wrong. Instead we should use other authors arguments not to prove them wrong but to create an intellectual counterargument of our own. A place where countering is often unavoidable is any context that politics is involved. For example the blog, http://hipsterlibertarian.com/ entitled the Hipster Libertarian. The tumblr page is description reads, “I like freedom, peace, and property. I don’t like corporatism, war, and the government telling us how to live, no matter who is in office.” There is a clearly defined argument and opinion running through this page created by Bonnie Kristian. Throughout the blog there are numerous online discussions and arguments in which she engages her followers about various topics that they may agree or disagree on. I think this countering style adds something to her pages because she is not just stating what she believes she is interacting with people who possess different opinions than her own and not just saying ‘anyone who believes differently than I do is wrong.’ The term that Harris came up with for the concept is very fitting and something that all writers can benefit from using.