Devious ACT move

[king1]

It's all very well requiring someone to provide evidence to back their opinion but...

1. when they do, you need to accept and discuss it, preferably by providing your own contrary evidence if you disagree, and
2. you need to require the same from both sides of the argument.

I have yet to be shown any acknowledgement or respect for the sometimes hours I spent looking up and learning about something so that I could be sure my opinion was based on correct information. Or when my first hand life experience results in a view that differs from people who don't appear to know about whatever they are standing forth on.  I have given up.

I have yet to see anyone give any evidence of what is wrong with neoliberalism, how it can be said that all politicians are bastards, why all rich people are greedy, or any of the other sweeping generalisations that are so often made here and apparently accepted without question even when they are completely wrong.

pretty much agree with much of that SueDonim - that was me trying to get the discussion back on track...

The only exception would be the bit about accepting provided evidence, that would be silly and has in no small way got the world into the state it is on many fronts... 

I like the old saying 

It is the mark of an educated mind to entertain a thought without accepting it

Sweeping generalisations are mostly able to be ignored (from both right and left) when they are of the variety you describe ie all politicians are bastards, why all rich people are greedy - mainly because most rational people will know that these statements can't actually be true, there is likely to be the odd nice politician and there are definitely some non-greedy rich people in the world. 

But I do feel that where there are claims about specific named people, causing things that can't really be attributed solely to them (especially when it appears to be more of a targeted attack than an actual discussion) then there should be an onus on the claimant to provide some justification for said claims, beyond the usual do your own research hyperbole that comes out of certain factions.

Now they certainly don't need to provide that information if they can't or won't but in the interests of the discussion, it is expected.