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Intellectual Red Flags
Easy to Spot Warning Signs in Public and Political Discourse
Red Flags are Not Just for Dating
When you read an op-ed piece in the New York Times or listen to a political debate on TV, how do you know if it is good or bad? How can you judge the quality of the argument or debate?
While there are lots of ways to judge the quality of ‘intellectual’ content, most of them are not easy to catch unless you know what to look for.
For example, in politics it is common — at least in the U.S. — to attack a person rather than a position and argument. This is called (meaning ‘to the person’) and is considered bad form in debate. Yet it is prevalent all around the world. Why? Because it works and politicians get away with it.
So today, rather than burying you in Latin terms and other complicated jargon, I want to offer some intellectual ‘red flags’. These things are easy to remember and spot meaning you can quickly use them in your daily life.
The three I will talk about here are:
- Using all or nothing language.
- Using overly complicated language.
- Going broad not deep.
