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Hypocrisy_Central's avatar

Are people threatened by questions that challenge their logic, morality, or political correctness, etc.?

Asked by Hypocrisy_Central (26879points) May 3rd, 2014

When fielding questions and observing others around Fluther, it appears to me, that some people seem to be threatened by hard questions that challenge what or how they think and believe about things, especially when they have to make tough choices about their morality, logic, or political correctness, etc. People will introduce an option that is akin to “low hanging fruit”, attempt to dismiss the question or avoid answering it, and if the options are worse or more horrendous, they want to choose something OK which was not one of the options. For instance, if someone had the choice of how their death would come, and the options are bleeding out from a shark attack, being burned to death in a vehicle accident or dying in your sleep, who would pick any of the first two with the “low hanging fruit, easy third option”? How challenging of a question could it be if there were super easy options to choose from? Because choosing from worse to horrendous would confront an individual’s personal demons, are people more threatened by a question that would expose them?

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19 Answers

chyna's avatar

How is choosing an easy death over horrendous deaths challenging my logic? The logical answer is to choose the easiest less terrifying death. Not a threatening question in my opinion.

whitenoise's avatar

I’m not threatened by them.

If they are properly written, I am challenged by them. If they are based on false assumptions or shaky logic, I’m not threatened but rather annoyed. Sometimes even angry.

To address your example, by the way, I must say that I would really hate to die in my sleep. I will die only once and I want to experience that as much as possible.

Then however the alternatives are so far stretched that I wouldn’t know what to chose.

I guess bleeding out would be less painful.

FlyingWolf's avatar

I’m fairly certain it depends on the person, although the sample question you provided seems to make no sense in the context of what you are asking. I have to agree with @chyna opting for the peaceful, painless death isn’t picking low hanging fruit, it is common sense for most people. It also has nothing to do with logic, morality, or political correctness.

Hypocrisy_Central's avatar

@FlyingWolf I have to agree with @chyna opting for the peaceful, painless death isn’t picking low hanging fruit, it is common sense for most people. It also has nothing to do with logic, morality, or political correctness.
(Groan) The “death example” was just that, an example. It was to illustrate how people want to sidestep the given options for an easier one because they do not like the harder ones. I could not go through every instance moral, logical, etc., where a person would Gregory Hines hat dance past because it would make them go against their morals, expose some illogical or hypocritical thought.

FlyingWolf's avatar

@Hypocrisy_Central what you call tap dancing some people call answering the question. I vividly remember a question that gave three choices for a response. I disagreed with all three and said so. Responses such as those can be very helpful because they can make the OP take a perspective they hadn’t thought of. No tap dancing, no Gregory. Hines, no lack of logic or morals, just an honest answer to the question.

Hypocrisy_Central's avatar

@FlyingWolf I vividly remember a question that gave three choices for a response.
This question did not have multiple choices. If I were able to post every possible scenario one would have been if you were in the hiring position for a job that was fairly remote from civilization, and with a small team of workers, if you have the opportunity to fill the last position before the job starts in a day and a half. You have two people apply, one who doesn’t have a criminal record but is about as sharp as a bag of bowling balls, than the other guy is over qualified and knows it, but need the job and will work for less than his credentials demand, but he just discharged off parole for a heinous crime 5 weeks from the day he put in his application. Who is hired and who is not falls solely one you, in such a situation –be it any real life scenario with similar players—, who would you hire, especially when you can’t wait until the guy who is as sharp as a brass tack with a suma cum laude in his belt walks through the door?

chyna's avatar

So you are asking new questions within your question?
If people feel threatened by questions, they won’t answer. Simple.

ragingloli's avatar

Some people, yes.
They will snap, insult the one that asked the question, and call the question stupid.

Berserker's avatar

I think most of the negativity of this sort occurs when someone doesn’t agree with one’s views or opinions. Some people seem incapable of respecting a different outlook that does not match their own, and will brand you an enemy after that. I lost what I thought to be friends on this site because I oh so dared to disagree with them. Frankly, I find it fucking pathetic. I hate how a disagreement or opposing viewpoints turn into schoolyard brawls, and how one must be right and the other wrong. Unfortunately on the internet, at least on forums and shit, just about everything a person has to say will be attributed to their character, since there is so little to define them besides their activity. I mean, this stuff doesn’t happen in real life. Well not in Canada, anyways.
As for being exposed or challenged in a way which might ’‘threaten’’ someone, I’m not entirely sure people act up if they feel this way. If a question made me feel that way, I would probably avoid participating in it altogether.

Hypocrisy_Central's avatar

@Symbeline Some people seem incapable of respecting a different outlook that does not match their own, and will brand you an enemy after that. I lost what I thought to be friends on this site because I oh so dared to disagree with them. Frankly, I find it fucking pathetic.
Exactly, and there are classic examples that happen all the time. For instance if there is a butt nugget at work, it comes to mind of those that work there the butt nugget missed out on a bonus etc. No one wants to tell him and let him discover it himself; if he ever does. You decide you are going to take the high road and tell him. Then all of a sudden you are sympathizing with the butt nugget. If you try to point out if it were them would they want to not be told, but rather answer the question which would affirm telling him of the missed bonus is the right thing to do, they want to deflect in defense by saying it is different with them because they are not a horrible person as the butt nugget, or people as rude or disrespectful should not get a bonus. Those who were friendly with you might act coldly to you for days or longer, simply because they wanted to see him get screwed and you took that option from them.

KNOWITALL's avatar

I don’t believe people always answer honestly when a more personally challenging question comes up.

For good reason as @Symbeline mentions, someone usually tries to force you to agree with them against your will, which is not usually fun. Lots of people here say they skip them, but I’m sure they have opinions, just like the rest of us. That in itself should encourage all of us to be more respectful of the variety of opinions.

FlyingWolf's avatar

Wait, @Hypocrisy Central, how is it the right thing to do to tell BT that he missed out on the bonus? That isn’t a good thing at all, it is rubbing his nose in it. You have it backwards, if you are sympathizing with BT and feeling bad for him, you would keep you mouth shut.

Hypocrisy_Central's avatar

@FlyingWolf Wait, @Hypocrisy Central, how is it the right thing to do to tell BT that he missed out on the bonus?
It is only a bad thing, and rubbing his nose in it if you do so in a way to say, ”we got this and you didn’t and don’t deserve it either because you are an A-hole.” If you told him as a FYI, then he can look into it with HR, or payroll and get it rectified. Would you keep mum if it were a worker you really liked, and were on very good friendly terms with?

FlyingWolf's avatar

@Hypocrisy_Central wrong, wrong, wrong. It is a bad thing to tell him you received financial recompense that he did not whether you say it meaning to rub it in his face or not. A person could pretend they are doing it as a favor to the butt nugget, but it is not a favor, it will make him feel bad, and it is none of his business. It is not up to anyone in the company to police HR or payroll on this fellow’s behalf.

Hypocrisy_Central's avatar

@FlyingWolf A person could pretend they are doing it as a favor to the butt nugget, but it is not a favor, it will make him feel bad, and it is none of his business
So he would feel better if weeks or months down the way he learns everyone else received a bonus and no one told hium, if payroll did not catch it? If someone pretended to do it as a favor but did not, that would be wrong. To tell him because you do not want to see him miss money he could have and was slated to him anyway is not wrong. If it were you to receive a penalty for doing something but were unaware, or missing out on a bonus you should have, you would be OK wi9th people not telling you?

It is not up to anyone in the company to police HR or payroll on this fellow’s behalf.
If you simply tell him, dude, everyone in this section got a bonus; if you did not get one you better check with payroll”, that is hardly policing HR or payroll or standing in as his agent before them.

FlyingWolf's avatar

@Hypocrisy_Central you are completely and totally 100% off base and I am done discussing this with you.

whitenoise's avatar

Well I think @Hypo’s example makes perfect sense to me.

Even though I wonder at the term butt nugget.

Hypocrisy_Central's avatar

@whitenoise Even though I wonder at the term butt nugget.
Thanks, as least someone got it, and “but nugget” is a polite way of saying “little piece of s**t”.

Berserker's avatar

’‘Butt nugget’’ is something I heard in Beavis and Butthead.

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