951 Debating on Facebook

<p>Online debate forums are obscure, and Twitter limits length, so most “debate,” if it can be called that, occurs on Facebook. Debating on Facebook is a chore because memes make up the bulk of the posts, name-calling is ubiquitous, and people you would ignore in real-life often take over a thread from sheer stupidity. However, if you should want to use Facebook for debating, first get enough Friends so that there's always someone who will reply to your posts. Hopefully, those Friends will be someone you don’t mind losing as a friend, or they’re close enough to remain courteous & respectful, but don’t ever rely on that. Make a statement of fact, or fiction as the case may be, and let the chips fall.</p> <p>If you don’t want to mess up your own feed with budding enemies but still want the thrill of the conflict, you can always go trolling. First, follow good etiquette and don’t get too sharp on someone's Homepage, that's when spouses & family will really take personal offense; you should be looking for entertainment, not making enemies. Instead wait for topic to enter your feed and respond to that; you’ll just be one of dozens of semi-anonymous posters, and you can always stop posting if it gets too hot. Don’t contribute to the frenzy by calling people names, and if you're going to imply something, keep it subtle, but not too subtle, you are debating on Facebook.</p>