Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

skrewballl t1_j85e83a wrote

Reply to comment by Nelson_Gremdella in White Punks on Transit by [deleted]

noun: strawman

an intentionally misrepresented proposition that is set up because it is easier to defeat than an opponent's real argument.

why couldnt you engage with their original question?

this comment im responding to being at the top of this thread really shows the state of this sub!

wild

3

Nelson_Gremdella t1_j85mpft wrote

>easier to defeat than an opponent’s argument

Can you please clarify the OP’s “argument.”

2

skrewballl t1_j85n24m wrote

read: OP's question

2

Nelson_Gremdella t1_j85oon8 wrote

I’m still missing the “argument” here.

Please would you spell it out for me?

1

skrewballl t1_j85wv9p wrote

it was a question, not an argument, and the strawman fallacy still applies.

OP asked "How difficult can it be to find a Black person who rides the bus by necessity and not by choice to talk to? Or a Black transit advocate?"

you answered none of that, and redirected it to

then you suggested that they meant to ask something else: "what are you really upset about?"

then proceeded to answer your own questions instead of theirs: "s it the problems with the transit system outlined in the article you shared, or is it the fact that the article used a white person’s interview to publish and tell the story of how the transit system needs help?
If your answer is the latter, I would google the term “divide and conquer,” because that is how a ruling class achieves what is called redirection."

then you came to a conclusion that was pointed at OP and (insultingly) made a remark about how theyve been discredited: "The article discussed very real problems with the transit system. If you’re unable to process that without posting on Reddit about skin color, you have been divided and conquered."

OP never said that real problems werent talked about in the article, or even even comment all on the quality of the article. They asked about something COMPLETELY DIFFERENT, which you chose to ignore.

This is a textbook example of a strawman fallacy and I couldnt spell it out for you more than that.

the point is that you missed the point and everyone patted you no the back while OP got downvoted a ton and kinda made fun of and made to feel bad about asking a legit question.

3

Nelson_Gremdella t1_j86krut wrote

>How difficult can it be to find a Black person who rides the bus by necessity and not by choice to talk to? Or a Black transit advocate?

What exactly is it that upsets you about this article?

Why does the article have to feature “a black person who rides the bus by necessity and not by choice” for you to understand that the issues described in the article regarding the transit system apply to everyone and anyone who uses the transit system?

Look, I understand you are coming from a good place. As a white person, you don’t want black people to get shit on and all that. We all feel that way.

However, this article isn’t it.

If anything this article is bringing real issues to light that affect “black people that have to ride the bus through necessity,” which is good.

The reason why more “black people ride the bus through necessity” than white people is definitely not an article highlighting very real issues bus riders face…

Right?

5

skrewballl t1_j86mnjh wrote

i think the point is that you are just being way too literal about this in a situation where OP was to me kinda leaning more towards the general idea that the banner was taking a page out of the suns book (paper lol) by just not representing the community. and if its obvious enough for someone to think about and question, its worth talking about. instead OP was kind of just battered around about their question mostly without it ever being answered. and that to me is one of the insidious parts of strucural racism. if we all just figure that what the white people are saying is the same as what other races might say because those are the people that the publication is aimed at and its a general issue, then it just makes an echo chamber for one dominant groups perspectives.

sorry for the crummy formatting but i think im finished with this lil spat, nice talkin to ya!

1

Nelson_Gremdella t1_j86pu3z wrote

I hear what you’re saying, and like I told the OP, I believe you’re coming from a good place.

I just feeling like this is overshooting, and continuing to do so will just delegitimize any real issues this city has with poverty.

1