site banner
PaperclipPerfector  5mo ago (text post)   2319 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for December 1, 2023

Be advised: this thread is not for serious in-depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.

4
Top Bottom Old Controversial Comments
Jump in the discussion.

No email address required.

I got married a month ago, in a barebones courthouse elopement. Click through for some pictures of our adorable ring-bearer.

Congrats! You're a man with the same sensibilities I share.

My question had no ornation, deployed haphazardly while sitting on our couch, and Elle first asked if I was serious before her emphatic yes.

With the same flare for drama and romance, my proposal (such as it was) occurred in my car, on the way to dinner, with the observation that we really should just get married since we were going to be together forever anyway. The only place we differed is that we did go with 4 guests, just our parents. That line was easy enough to draw that we didn't think it would offend anyone too terribly.

I knew there was a reason I liked you. We did immediate family only, one surviving grandparent, siblings, parents, plus maid of honor/best man.

The only place we differed is that we did go with 4 guests, just our parents. That line was easy enough to draw that we didn't think it would offend anyone too terribly.

That's what my friend did with their elopement. That would've made sense if our parents were in town, but if they were going to fly in then naturally others would also want to be there and then...

What is this place?

This website is a place for people who want to move past shady thinking and test their ideas in a court of people who don't all share the same biases. Our goal is to optimize for light, not heat; this is a group effort, and all commentators are asked to do their part.

The weekly Culture War threads host the most controversial topics and are the most visible aspect of The Motte. However, many other topics are appropriate here. We encourage people to post anything related to science, politics, or philosophy; if in doubt, post!

Check out The Vault for an archive of old quality posts. You are encouraged to crosspost these elsewhere.


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.


New post guidelines

If you're posting something that isn't related to the culture war, we encourage you to post a thread for it. A submission statement is highly appreciated, but isn't necessary for text posts or links to largely-text posts such as blogs or news articles; if we're unsure of the value of your post, we might remove it until you add a submission statement. A submission statement is required for non-text sources (videos, podcasts, images).

Culture war posts go in the culture war thread; all links must either include a submission statement or significant commentary. Bare links without those will be removed.

If in doubt, please post it!


Rules


Recommended Posts And Communities

Recommended Realtime Chats