New account but I’ve been using burner accounts and lurking since the sub got banned. I’ve been seeing all the standard liberal brainworms again for the first time since 
and everytime it’s an account from another federation. I was tepidly against federation at first but this has been entertaining, like the old days of 
people who wandered into the sub.
I gotta imagine this will only last another week before everyone defederates us, but let’s enjoy it for now.
Most of these people aren’t available to be convinced.
And even if they were, the whole idea that kindness and civility is the most effective way to convince people is one of those mantras that gets repeated so much that everyone seems to just assume it’s true, when I have my doubts.
For one it’s always a one way street, the people who call for other to be civil to them often aren’t civil to other, you see this on the right all the time, it’s almost like the know that nastiness is actually effective and want to be free to engage in it all they want while denying their opponents the tactic.
And speaking anecdotally, sometimes a harsh boot up the ass can help knock people out of their BS. I’ve seen it happen to others and had it happen to me. Their initial response is to get pissed and run away but after the initial sting fades from their butthole the often go “oh shit that guy had a point I was being stupid”.
And driving the bad faith people away makes for a better space to engage with people who we actually share some common ground with.
All and all I think meanness and hostility can actually be really effective rhetorical tools, bullying works.
😠