For context, the post I'm referring to is a map of Africa with subsaharia Africa in deep green, Sudan in light green and north Africa was white or some other color. The poster was claiming nothing had ever been invented in the green zone. My comment was gonna be this:
Antiseptics before Europeans.
Iron Smelting Not the first to discover it, but recent evidence show it was invented independently.
Some modern Archtecture taking inspiration from Sudano-Sahelian features such as a roof shape favoring natural ventilation. And since I just transitioned to recent inventions, there's the Cardio Pad, invented in Cameroon, to help diagnose cardiovascular disease.
Yeah, don't waste your time looking up sources for people who aren't interested in changing their mind.
Sometimes I am accidentally (slightly) racist or sexist and don't realize it. Just because I was raised in a family that was pretty disconnected from society. I always appriciate it if someone pioints it out to me in a civilized manner instead of the usual "nazi" or "fucking whitetrash asshole". Insults don't make me want to change my mistake.
What are you saying to be regularly called a Nazi?
The same thing happened to me when I was young. Once or twice, I asked a chain of questions that sounded an awful lot like sealioning. I've not been called a fascist more than twice, but it fucking hurts so it sticks with you.
I'm better now. Both less ignorant and very slightly more understanding of how I come across.
I'm not always sure, it doesn't happen weekly or even monthly, but sometimes it sticks. Maybe I have a tendency to overanalyze things where the topic is a subject of emotion. Maybe I just shouldn't mingle myself in certain topics like gender or politics. Anyways, I'm sure it's me, but if it keeps happening and I can't find out how to change myself, than I slowly turn into a Seymour Skinner i.e. "Is it me? Nah, it's them"
There's value there, it's just not in convincing the person you're responding to. Speak to the other people reading their bullshit. Nonsense starts to look legitimate if it's not challenged.
But maybe I am interested? Fact checking isnt just useful for the primary offender but for anyone else reading their lies, that might get the wrong idea of what the truth is.
Then you should do it. My point is that if you think you're going to change someone's mind who just wants to argue, your energy is better directed elsewhere.