well arguing online won't accomplish anything, typical backfire affect,
The last time you got into, or sat on the sidelines of, an argument
online with someone who thought they knew all there was to know about
health care reform, gun control, gay marriage, climate change, sex
education, the drug war, Joss Whedon or whether or not 0.9999 repeated
to infinity was equal to one – how did it go?
Did you teach the other party a valuable lesson? Did they thank you
for edifying them on the intricacies of the issue after cursing their
heretofore ignorance, doffing their virtual hat as they parted from the
keyboard a better person?
No, probably not. Most online battles follow a similar pattern, each
side launching attacks and pulling evidence from deep inside the web to
back up their positions until, out of frustration, one party resorts to
an all-out ad hominem nuclear strike. If you are lucky, the comment
thread will get derailed in time for you to keep your dignity, or a
neighboring commenter will help initiate a text-based dogpile on your
opponent.
What should be evident from the studies on the backfire effect is you
can never win an argument online. When you start to pull out facts and
figures, hyperlinks and quotes, you are actually making the opponent
feel as though they are even more sure of their position than before you
started the debate. As they match your fervor, the same thing happens
in your skull. The backfire effect pushes both of you deeper into your
original beliefs.