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The Folly of Debating Evil
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The Folly of Debating Evil

Not all debates are worth having

This week's episode discusses "The Folly of Debating Evil." Is every idea worthy of a platform? Should every position be considered worthy of debate? We tackle these questions head-on, arguing that the answer is a resounding no. Engaging with evil as if it were a legitimate perspective grants it an undeserved level of credibility and allows for manipulating moral absolutes into moral relativism.

Key topics covered in this episode include:

  • How evil seeks to erode moral certainty by drawing the virtuous into debate, shifting the conversation from right and wrong to preferences and perspectives.

  • Why debating with those who seek to justify wickedness is a dangerous game, as evil seeks to corrupt rather than understand.

  • Why arguing with a liar only dignifies their lies and entertaining conversations about harming children grants evil legitimacy.

  • Why the proper response to wickedness is to call it out, not debate it.

  • We discuss how we should not debate, treat arguments as valid discussion points, or allow those advocating evil to set the terms of conversation; instead, we should expose them and name their tactics.

  • Why, in an age of moral confusion, it is a mistake to assume all positions deserve a hearing, and some ideas deserve only rejection and condemnation.

  • Why entertaining evil is a betrayal of the truth, and the only way to defeat it is to refuse to yield ground.

Discussion about this episode