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PaperclipPerfector  16hr ago (text post)   501 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for April 12, 2026

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

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Did you know that Christ is risen from the dead, putting down death by death?

No? A few people have been buried alive because they had an unnoticable heartbeat or something and then been rescued; but other than those arguable technicalities, Death stands undefeated with a perfect track record against humanity.

Far more than a few actually. In Britain at one point it was so common (enough to warrant a solution to the problem at least) that they tied bells to the foot of the deceased at the time of burial so the watchmen on duty could detect when someone had accidentally been buried alive.

;)

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Why are you called The Motte?

A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently, it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey", originally identified by philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."

On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.


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