Over the years of online debate and discussion I’ve made enough mistakes to compile this short list of do’s and don’ts. It’s certainly not complete so please share your own.
5 Ways To Lose (Even If You Win):
1. USE ALL CAPS AND EXCLAMATION MARKS!!!!!!!!!!!!
2. Generalize and stereotype
3. Exaggerate
4. Assume
5. Bring up Hitler
5 Ways To Win (Even If You Lose):
1. Take the discussion offline over e-mail, phone or (gasp) face to face
2. Say “I Don’t Know”, “I’m sorry” and “Thank you”
3. Don’t write anything you wouldn’t want your mama, your spouse, your pastor and the police to see
4. Admit when you’re wrong and encourage when she’s right
5. Discuss ideas, not people
Adding to “ways to lose” under “assume”: Assume that your understanding of God & how God works is infallible.
I would say a way to lose is to “start an argument online.”
I have never come away from an online/email debate or argument feeling good about the process or the outcome.
Hey Shaun Groves! I’ve been reading about all these awesome bloggers who are privileged to get to go on Compassion Missions trips. While I am not an awesome blogger, I was wondering if you guys, or if you knew, if Compassion offered Missions Trips for those who don’t blog, or have popular blogs?
A couple things, Amanda. First, the blog trips aren’t mission trips. The bloggers are going on what Compassion calls a “vision trip.” It’s not about us coming in and doing work for the locals. We’re going to learn about the work the locals are doing for themselves. Then our job is to report on that work and ask readers to join in that work by sponsoring a child.
Second, Yes! Yes, any sponsor can visit his/her sponsored child. Compassion regularly hosts sponsor tours – large groups of sponsors traveling to see their sponsored kids in one country all at once. Any sponsor who has given Compassion their e-mail address will be notified when a sponsor tour to their child’s country is approaching.
But sponsors can also go on trips by themselves. Any sponsor can visit their child. They just need to get themselves there, let Compassion know they’re coming at least six weeks in advance, and Compassion will set up a meeting between them and their child.
Also, Compassion partners with churches here in the U.S., Canada and elsewhere – forging a partnership between that church and a Compassion project (which is also a church in the third world). When a church here has a relationship with a church there (through Compassion) the church here often takes members over to do true mission trips – building, teaching, etc.
So there are at least three ways ANYBODY can see the work of Compassion. But these blogging trips are more journalistic with the aim of seeing many many more kids sponsored by blog readers.
Awesome. Awesome! Thank you!! I seriously have been impacted through the bloggers who have gone on the trips. Now I LOVE Compassion. I highly believe this idea of the vision trips is from the Lord! So many people are hearing about Compassion and it is from people we trust! God is so amazing to use technology in this way! To change these sweet children’s lives! All for the glory of Jesus! Woohoo!
“5. Bring up Hitler”
‘Hitler’ should not make me laugh. But that did.
So true though. I love how passive/aggressive the interwebby is. Conflict resolution is a lost art. I need lessons too.
Thanks for sharing.
ShaunGroves.com/Paper Street Soap = Awesome
Glad somebody got it. I was beginning to wonder if all that time on Photoshop was wasted.
Ha! This cracked me up. I was compared to Hitler and called a communist (all in caps, of course) by one commentor and yeah…he lost a bit of credibility and I’m pretty sure his intended message was not understood. These are very true, humorous points to engaging in online debate
Lose =
Have lods of typos an poor grammar in your coments
- a ded give away that yo are typig too fast ad not thinkng – or prayng abot wat you re saying !
Ha. So true.
Yes that is true. It is senseless to carry on petty arguments from behind a screen about matters of importance. There are a lot of agitators, or “trolls” or whatever, who dwell on being persistent jackasses.
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[...] So to lighten the mood, I saw Shaun Groves “5 Ways to Win/Lose an Argument Online”: 5 Ways To Lose (Even If You Win): [...]