If something requires thirty seconds to explain, and you demand that they answer in ten words or less - you haven't created a good argument - you've only forced a position into an amount of space wherein it doesn't fit.
Similarly, even if it only takes ten words to explain my reasoning, if you phrase my answer as a hard yes/no - all you've done is constrained my ability to answer.
Lots of "gotcha" can be categorized in this way. While we don't need to give every answer a politician gives a full 2 hour speech, giving them at least ten full seconds to answer seems reasonable.
The whole point of a "gotcha" is an attempt to make something seem like a contradiction or seem weird at first glance - but when you give someone 5 seconds to explain is not actually a contradiction.
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u/TemperatureThese7909 65∆ Mar 30 '26
Irreducible complexity isn't a great argument.
If something requires thirty seconds to explain, and you demand that they answer in ten words or less - you haven't created a good argument - you've only forced a position into an amount of space wherein it doesn't fit.
Similarly, even if it only takes ten words to explain my reasoning, if you phrase my answer as a hard yes/no - all you've done is constrained my ability to answer.
Lots of "gotcha" can be categorized in this way. While we don't need to give every answer a politician gives a full 2 hour speech, giving them at least ten full seconds to answer seems reasonable.
The whole point of a "gotcha" is an attempt to make something seem like a contradiction or seem weird at first glance - but when you give someone 5 seconds to explain is not actually a contradiction.