The behaviour observed within the BTC and broader cryptocurrency communities can be understood as an abdication of genuine argumentation.
If we consider the act of argument as a form of language-game—one that is fundamentally about engaging in reasoned discourse, proposing premises, and drawing conclusions from them—then what these communities engage in is not argumentation at all.
They are not playing the same game. Instead of adhering to the logical structures and rules that make meaningful dialogue possible, they have replaced it with a different activity entirely: one grounded in intimidation, shouting, and the suppression of dissent.
TThat is, #censorship.
This is not an argument. It is a performance that mimics the structure of discourse but lacks its essence. Where we might expect reasons, we are given labels.
Where we might expect the careful construction of an argument, we encounter only noise—loud, emotionally charged noise intended to overwhelm rather than convince. The objective, it seems, is not to engage the interlocutor, but to silence them.
This is not a path to truth.
This is not the language-game of philosophy or constructive debate; this is the language-game of bullies.
Their reliance on logical fallacies—especially ad hominem attacks—is telling. An ad hominem is a fallacy not because it is a particularly poor argument, but because it is not an argument at all. It is a refusal to engage with the actual content of the other’s position.
The attempt to discredit or insult the person presenting the argument bypasses the need to address the argument itself.
In a sense, this is a failure of language to do what language is meant to do in such contexts: foster understanding.
However, the BTC crowd have no intention for people to understand.
The screaming, the name-calling, the refusal to entertain counterarguments—these are all tactics designed to stifle discourse, to foreclose the possibility of mutual comprehension. The objective is not to explore the truth but to assert dominance.
As Wittgenstein might put it: they have shifted from the task of seeking clarity to engaging in language-games that serve only to maintain their control of the discourse.
What this reveals is a deeper problem: an unwillingness to subject their views to critical scrutiny. When one cannot argue, one must either remain silent or, as they do, attempt to drown out opposition. They do not realise that, in doing so, they have stepped outside the bounds of rational inquiry.
They are no longer in the realm of philosophy, logic, or reason, but in the realm of dogma.
Language has ceased to function as a bridge between minds and has become a weapon, a tool for enforcing submission rather than achieving understanding.
In short, those within the BTC and cryptocurrency communities who resort to these tactics are not engaged in argument, but in a kind of linguistic violence.
They are not players in the same game as those who seek truth through reason.
Instead, they are attempting to subvert the rules of the game altogether, shouting louder in the hope that this will make them right.
S. Tominaga AKA CSW
Oct 19, 2024
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1847536456212140231.html
https://t.me/S_Tominaga/1532
If we consider the act of argument as a form of language-game—one that is fundamentally about engaging in reasoned discourse, proposing premises, and drawing conclusions from them—then what these communities engage in is not argumentation at all.
They are not playing the same game. Instead of adhering to the logical structures and rules that make meaningful dialogue possible, they have replaced it with a different activity entirely: one grounded in intimidation, shouting, and the suppression of dissent.
TThat is, #censorship.
This is not an argument. It is a performance that mimics the structure of discourse but lacks its essence. Where we might expect reasons, we are given labels.
Where we might expect the careful construction of an argument, we encounter only noise—loud, emotionally charged noise intended to overwhelm rather than convince. The objective, it seems, is not to engage the interlocutor, but to silence them.
This is not a path to truth.
This is not the language-game of philosophy or constructive debate; this is the language-game of bullies.
Their reliance on logical fallacies—especially ad hominem attacks—is telling. An ad hominem is a fallacy not because it is a particularly poor argument, but because it is not an argument at all. It is a refusal to engage with the actual content of the other’s position.
The attempt to discredit or insult the person presenting the argument bypasses the need to address the argument itself.
In a sense, this is a failure of language to do what language is meant to do in such contexts: foster understanding.
However, the BTC crowd have no intention for people to understand.
The screaming, the name-calling, the refusal to entertain counterarguments—these are all tactics designed to stifle discourse, to foreclose the possibility of mutual comprehension. The objective is not to explore the truth but to assert dominance.
As Wittgenstein might put it: they have shifted from the task of seeking clarity to engaging in language-games that serve only to maintain their control of the discourse.
What this reveals is a deeper problem: an unwillingness to subject their views to critical scrutiny. When one cannot argue, one must either remain silent or, as they do, attempt to drown out opposition. They do not realise that, in doing so, they have stepped outside the bounds of rational inquiry.
They are no longer in the realm of philosophy, logic, or reason, but in the realm of dogma.
Language has ceased to function as a bridge between minds and has become a weapon, a tool for enforcing submission rather than achieving understanding.
In short, those within the BTC and cryptocurrency communities who resort to these tactics are not engaged in argument, but in a kind of linguistic violence.
They are not players in the same game as those who seek truth through reason.
Instead, they are attempting to subvert the rules of the game altogether, shouting louder in the hope that this will make them right.
S. Tominaga AKA CSW
Oct 19, 2024
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1847536456212140231.html
https://t.me/S_Tominaga/1532
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