War of Insults

Public debate today is seldom related to the issues at stake. Most rhetoric centers on disqualifying the other debaters from participating in the discussion. They are either evil manipulators or incompetent idiots. Why convince people of the merits of your thoughts, when you can convince them simply not to listen to any other voices? Insular circles of like-minded people all reinforcing each others' myopic take on reality with no means of inviting critique, alternatives, or even a simple reality check to inform. Each closed community spiraling toward hyper-confident extremes that make public debate seem futile and unnecessary. Once again war, even a war of insults, finds itself looking for ways to eliminate the enemy.