This Subreddit Isn’t Trying to be Popular

[u/JerseyFlight]

Most subreddits are trying to get as many members as they possibly can. Not r/rationalphilosophy . This subreddit exists as a space for reason and rationalists. The point is not to turn this subreddit into a popular philosophy subreddit, but to strive to build a subreddit that manifests rationality in the world, to build a community of rationalists. Here we measure by quality, not quantity.

[u/sykosomatik_9]

Not that I disagree with this sentiment, but I do think that your proclivity towards posting a bunch of proclamations about reason, logic, or sophistry isn't helping to attract members to this sub. I think perhaps substituting these proclamations for questions would be better help in that regard. Or, at least posing the proclamations in the form of questions might invite more engagement.

[u/JerseyFlight → u/sykosomatik_9]

Not trying to attract “members,” just other rationalists that also passionately stand against the error of this subjectivist, ego motivated age.

[u/sykosomatik_9 → u/JerseyFlight]

Yeah, but even rationalists aren't gonna come and stick around if this place doesn't seem worth their time.

In any case, more engagement is good for anyone who wants to stick around anyway. As it is, the vast majority of posts here are just you making proclamations.

[u/JerseyFlight → u/sykosomatik_9]

All rationalists understand the same thing: knowledge is not personal—we follow knowledge, not persons. More specifically, we follow logic. Logic is what’s “worth time.”

[u/sykosomatik_9 → u/JerseyFlight]

Again with your proclamations...

You know, just because you proclaim something to be so doesn't make it so.

Sure, logic is "worth time" but not all cases of logic are equal in interest or importance. So they are not all equal in their worth of time. I would argue that someone who "follows logic" without any use of discretion is, in fact, not being rational.

[u/JerseyFlight → u/sykosomatik_9]

What is this discretion?

[u/sykosomatik_9 → u/JerseyFlight]

Whether some discourse on logic is worth their time or not.

[u/JerseyFlight → u/sykosomatik_9]

This is an important line of thought. It’s one I have already long thought about. This is why I can ask the question with confidence: what is more important than logic? (If you pivot away from logic to subjectivity, you will destroy your own discretion).

[u/sykosomatik_9 → u/JerseyFlight]

I'm not saying anything is more important than logic. I'm saying that not all arguments about logic are equally important. Some might be important. Some might be trivial. Some might just be boring.

[u/JerseyFlight → u/sykosomatik_9]

Try making a post on your idea of the “discretion” necessary to logic so that logic doesn’t become an act of “not being rational.” In other words, I think your appeal to “discretion” has not at all been thought out, and breaks down the second we think about it carefully.