Continue the discussion on its merits. Saying that a point is a strawman does not on the face of it counter the point. Try harder. Or don't argue. - Scoble, Alex Scoble

This prescriptive post has been brought to you by the letters P and R. - Scoble, Alex Scoble

The reason why you don't argue against a strawman on its own merits is because that's not the actual argument. It's just a way to divert attention from the actual argument. So, no, I don't think it's an automatic loss. - Victor Ganata

Hitler made a lot of strawman arguments too. - Todd Hoff

Strawman et tu quoque FTW :) We need to get an ad hominem in there, too. - Victor Ganata

Yeah, what Victor said. If an argument really is a strawman, there's no benefit to arguing it on its merits. - Andrew C (✓)

The strawperson community is not impressed with any of this. - Micah

How to never lose an argument: Step 1. Be Alex Scoble. (Or me.) - Jimminy IS Everybody from fftogo

Strawman arguments are a slippery slope to communism. - John (bird whisperer)

Answer the question. ANSWER THE QUESTION! - Steele Lawman

Here's the thing, most so-called straw man arguments aren't. Calling a point of discussion a straw man is a weak attempt to control the conversation towards your agenda, so yes, it's an automatic loss. There's no way to win an argument, but plenty of paths to lose. - Scoble, Alex Scoble

Just because a person doesn't think that a point is completely related to a discussion doesn't mean that it isn't. For instance, saying that you don't need doctorate level physics to understand hitting a baseball is incorrect. - Scoble, Alex Scoble

That's the hinge: if it's not actually a strawman, then, yeah. (But even if it's not a strawman, it can still be tangential to the actual argument.) But strawmen are really easy to create. I definitely disagree with the idea that most arguments aren't. - Victor Ganata

The internet isn't debate club, so if that's what you are after, you will continually be sorely disappointed. Most arguments/conversations are of the vi vs nano variety, or the "are eggs good for human consumption or not?" variety. There's no right answer. Reasonable people can disagree. - Scoble, Alex Scoble

Granted, the person calling an argument a strawman has the burden of proving it's actually a strawman. So, yeah, calling an argument that isn't a strawman a strawman is not a winning argument. But calling an argument that is a strawman a strawman is an automatic win. - Victor Ganata

If the conclusion is that reasonable people can disagree (which I find reasonable), then it makes no sense discussing winning or losing arguments. - Victor Ganata

There may be no right answers, but some answers are much better reasoned and have better evidence than others. - Victor Ganata

In my experience and humble opinion, trying to win an argument on the internet is like trying to win a nuclear war. Some activities in life don't have a winning solution, only numerous losing ones. :D - Scoble, Alex Scoble

I agree that some answers are much better reasoned and have more supportive evidence, but, in my opinion, it's an exercise in futility to try to leverage that to get someone with an entrenched worldview to change how they see things. - Scoble, Alex Scoble

I have met people who would literally rather die than change their mind, so, yeah. - Victor Ganata

Science tells us that the more you present people with information that proves their position wrong, the more they believe their position is right. - Kevin (aka ThreadKilla)

I'm more interested in being right than in winning an argument, though. =) - Andrew C (✓)

If you think you can be right in a topic like "are eggs good for human consumption?" go right ahead and knock yourself out. - Scoble, Alex Scoble