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[Two Words]

This has been a growing pet peeve for me the past few years. I get noticeably annoyed when people often speak in absolutes. I try not to bring up their use of absolutes unless I feel it is significantly affecting what they are saying. I know I do it sometimes too, but I try to not. And when I see myself using an absolute in something I once said or posted, I tend to feel a little cringey about it.

I know some people can think it is pedantic to say "you really shouldn't say always unless it is actually always". However, I feel that speaking in absolutes not only affects the conversation, but also the way people think.

Do you use absolutes a lot? Do you call people out for using it?

 

[Aselith]

They are all terrible people, every single one.

 

[Fades]

Only a Sith deals in absolutes.

 

[torre_avenue]

They tend to be bad people.

After all, only a Sith deals in absolutes.

EDIT: YOU SON OF A BITCH.

 

[sarcastor]

They are all terrible people, every single one.

People who talk like this are all idiots. All of them

 

[Stinkles]

Edit.

So, so late,.

 

[pashmilla]

only a Sith deals in--

Only a Sith deals in absolutes.

They tend to be bad people.

After all, only a Sith deals in absolutes.

--yeah, that.

 

[The Pope]

In my opinion the jedi are evil.
Edit:Usually those of below average intelligence. I call them out and or disassociate from them. Common amoungst those religiously to the left(exteme) or the alt right. My absolutist fellow liberals get on my nerves. I just hate self righteous people on the left or the right.

 

[The Lamp]

I hate it. My mom does it. It's a form of psychological manipulation common with guilt tactics.

"You always do this"
"You never listen"
"You're never home"
Etc

We should try to avoid absolute adjectives in criticism. It's usually unfair.

Spoiler

the only absolute is that if you voted for Trump, you don't know how to politic

 

[AZUMIKE]

Only a Sith deals in absolutes

Spoiler

lol don't we get this thread like once a year?

 

[sugarhigh4242]

Absolutes facilitate clear communication.

Trust your audience's intelligence to sort out the exceptions.

 

[Two Words]

I hate it. My mom does it. It's a form of psychological manipulation common with guilt tactics.

"You always do this"
"You never listen"
"You're never home"
Etc

We should try to avoid absolute adjectives in criticism. It's usually unfair.

See, when people do this, I will call them out like "Okay, do I really always do this? Really?" They will often take on the attitude that I am being pedantic to avoid whatever issue they have. But I feel that it is important to frame their problem with me under realistic terms.

 

[A-V-B]

I say to them: Friend, you are crazy!

 

[Rentahamster]

I absolutely think they're misguided for doing so.

 

[Moff]

it really is the most quotable movie of all time, isn't it

 

[The Lamp]

Absolutes facilitate clear communication.

Trust your audience's intelligence to sort out the exceptions.

Nah, I've heard psychologists say it's particularly troublesome in couples or family counseling. People tend to criticize with unfair absolutes

 

[rjinaz]

Can't stand people that post on gaf in absolutes.

This IS going to happen.

This movie is shit (no that's your opinion, you THINK the movie is shit).

If you want to talk in absolutes like you are the knower of all things, don't be surprised when somebody calls you on it when you end up being wrong. of course though those same people will say "how immature" when you do call them on it.

I admit I have done it. I said Trump wouldn't president. But I was called out on that and rightfully so. I really try to avoid it because it irks me when others do it even when it seems like it's a sure thing.

I find that people that do it regularly tend to be very self-centered.

 

[DragonKnight]

Seriously thought this was a stealth Sith thread.

 

[umop_3pisdn]

'Real' absolutes aren't common enough for frequent use.

I think people are going to have areas where maybe their thinking isn't the most nuanced, in which case anyone would try to find some very clear or clean (and reductive) way of cutting things, but if it's something someone is doing a lot, it's probably a pretty good sign that someone is almost systematically or characteristically not doing their due diligence.

 

[Two Words]

Absolutes facilitate clear communication.

Trust your audience's intelligence to sort out the exceptions.

Why not trust your audience's intelligence to be able to take in a more detailed conversation?

 

[MattKeil]

Absolutes facilitate clear communication.

Trust your audience's intelligence to sort out the exceptions.

That second part hasn't been working so well on a macro scale recently, you may notice.

 

[entremet]

Only a Sith deals in absolutes.

They tend to be bad people.

After all, only a Sith deals in absolutes.

EDIT: YOU SON OF A BITCH.

only a Sith deals in--





--yeah, that.

 

[Weckum]

Only a Sith deals in absolutes.

Came here for this, was not disappointed.

 

[Ogodei]

Nothing wrong with a little sweeping melodrama. It's a rhetorical flourish.

 

[Messofanego]

I get annoyed the other way when someone goes all #notallmen or not all white people as if they're taking a systemic stance personally. As if they're personally being attacked, so they form a persecution complex.

 

[MadSexual]

I always have strained relationships with people like this. One dude in particular would be one of my best friends in the world if his manner of speaking didn't make so many of his statements searingly coarse or offensive.

 

[umop_3pisdn]

Absolutes facilitate clear communication.

Trust your audience's intelligence to sort out the exceptions.

Nah. Abstraction done in an intelligent way facilitates discussion, but absolutes tend to be abstraction taken to the point of excess. It's often the sort of thing you find underlying the kinds of vicious thinking that end up undermining their own foundation.

 

[SomedayTheFire]

I don't really care. It's much easier to judge in person but it's usually a form of hyperbole that isn't wholly believed by the person saying it. I groan at the backlash they get when it's incredibly easy to understand the initial point.

I get annoyed the other way when someone goes all #notallmen or not all white people as if they're taking a systemic stance personally. As if they're personally being attacked, so they form a persecution complex.

and this.

Can't stand people that post on gaf in absolutes.

This IS going to happen.

This movie is shit (no that's your opinion, you THINK the movie is shit).

If you want to talk in absolutes like you are the knower of all things, don't be surprised when somebody calls you on it when you end up being wrong. of course though those same people will say "how immature" when you do call them on it.

I admit I have done it. I said Trump wouldn't president. But I was called out on that and rightfully so. I really try to avoid it because it irks me when others do it even when it seems like it's a sure thing.

I find that people that do it regularly tend to be very self-centered.

honestly this is super dumb. a lot of people will say "this movie is shit" but it's actually "[i think] this movie is shit". getting annoyed at stuff like that is silly.

 

[highrider]

I usually think the person has ego or confidence issues.

 

[Jokergrin]

Only a sith .... somethin somethin

 

[umop_3pisdn]

It is pedantic to pick on a lot of absolutes, I think some kinds of tone are more appropriate for some subjects than others. Polemic is one thing that would basically be crippled if we couldn't use absolutes.

 

[yanipheonu]

"I've never met a single person who is infallible. Unless you want to tell you're secretly God or something."

 

[John Kowalski]

I appreciate how different people can be

 

[itwasTuesday]

sometimes it's okay, sometimes it's not

 

[Eumi]

Let's put it this way. Someone who speaks in absolutes is way less annoying than someone who criticises the way people speak.

 

[RageWaffles]

Can't stand people that post on gaf in absolutes.

This IS going to happen.

This movie is shit (no that's your opinion, you THINK the movie is shit).

If you want to talk in absolutes like you are the knower of all things, don't be surprised when somebody calls you on it when you end up being wrong. of course though those same people will say "how immature" when you do call them on it.

I admit I have done it. I said Trump wouldn't president. But I was called out on that and rightfully so. I really try to avoid it because it irks me when others do it even when it seems like it's a sure thing.

I find that people that do it regularly tend to be very self-centered.

Just wondering, can you also not stand when people say "this movie is great" or "that person is hot"?

Whenever someone makes a subjective statement ("this thing is great/terrible/etc.") it's always implied that it's their opinion. Because that's what subjective statements are: opinions.

 

[Two Words]

Let's put it this way. Someone who speaks in absolutes is way less annoying than someone who criticises the way people speak.

My argument is that speaking in absolutes doesn't just affect the way you speak. It also affects the way you think if that is how you regularly talk.

 

[Eblo]

Never encountered this

 

[jerry113]

only a Sith deals in--





--yeah, that.

This is why I come to gaf

 

[HiredN00bs]

I say to them: Friend, you are crazy!

Never encountered this

lol

I used to be bothered by this in the past. It is a little pedantic to police other people on it, so I just try to avoid doing it myself.

I always liked that Ep. 3 line because the statement itself is an absolute. Such a bad movie.

 

[Monocle]

I never really care, but it always bothers me.

 

[Two Words]

lol

I used to be bothered by this in the past. It is a little pedantic to police other people on it, so I just try to avoid doing it myself.

I always liked that Ep. 3 line because the statement itself is an absolute. Such a bad movie.

Why is it "policing" to bring it up?

 

[pigeon interrupted]

I fall over on using absolutes and my defence is that it's like using exaggeration in conversation. Truth is it isn't a good habit; It's the kind of thing people love to pick you up on during discussions on gaf. Also blanket statements about a group based on a single incident. What really annoys me is people reducing complex situations and forcing a binary. Best to avoid but also easy to slip up on.

 

[kirblar]

Absolutes facilitate clear communication.

Trust your audience's intelligence to sort out the exceptions.

It does the complete opposite by making everything black/white. Useful for building a hivemind, not much else.

 

[HiredN00bs]

Why is it "policing" to bring it up?

As in the "grammar police". When someone uses an absolute, they're engaging in hyperbole.

"You never wash the dishes." = "You so rarely wash the dishes and I wish you would more often."

Is it nicer to hear the latter? Sure. Is it more accurate? Yes. I'm not saying it isn't worth discussing with the person. But it may be interpreted as avoiding the subject. Divorcing a discussion about it from the topic at hand seems a prudent way to address it.

 

[akira28]

Make sure I have the high ground.


and a light saber or weapon of some kind.

 

[cryptosporidium]

They are all terrible people, every single one.

First post for the win




though I will say shit like "man that was the funniest shit".

 

[Silvard]

See, when people do this, I will call them out like "Okay, do I really always do this? Really?" They will often take on the attitude that I am being pedantic to avoid whatever issue they have. But I feel that it is important to frame their problem with me under realistic terms.

That never works.

 

[Shmuppers]

Never encountered this

How long have you been on GAF?

 

[chadtwo]

It bothers me but I get why people do it. I probably do it from time to time too without thinking about it.