# Is this name calling?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-name-calling/640775>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [November 12, 2012, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-name-calling/640775 "2012-11-12T14:35:56Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![El\_Zagna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d2c977/32.png) [@El\_Zagna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Zagna)\
**Post date:** [November 12, 2012, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-name-calling/640775/1 "2012-11-12T14:35:56Z")

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At another discussion forum I had the following conversation:

**Me** : It is the height of hypocrisy to criticize X while promoting Y. (Or something to that effect.)

**Other Guy** : Well, you can put me there.

**Me** : Just to be clear, you’re saying you are OK with being a hypocrite then?

**Other Guy** : Hey, no name calling.

I maintain that if there was any name calling, he did it to himself. I know that the SDMB is quick to slap down any name calling, so I thought I’d let you be the judge. Was this in violation of the name calling rules?

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**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\
**Post date:** [November 12, 2012, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-name-calling/640775/2 "2012-11-12T15:27:21Z")

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I get the impression Other Guy is behaving the way you describe, but does not consider the actions to be hypocrisy. Similarly, in hypothetical:  
A: If you support abortion rights, you’re a murderer.  
B: Well, I support abortion rights.  
A: Just to be clear, you’re saying you are OK with being a murderer then?  
B: Fuck you.

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**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\
**Post date:** [November 12, 2012, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-name-calling/640775/3 "2012-11-12T16:43:13Z")

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Moving this to IMHO from Great Debates - although if **El Zanga** is asking if this is a violation of Straight Dope rules it’ll get moved to ATMB. And I agree with **Bryan Ekers** ’ response here.

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**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\
**Post date:** [November 12, 2012, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-name-calling/640775/4 "2012-11-12T17:01:15Z")

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What they said. I think Other Poster was trying to present himself as an example of someone who believes he is level-headed and non-hypocritical, and you metaphorically flipped him off. Your response could have been something like “but how can you reconcile X and Y in light of blah blah” and instead it was basically “lol, hypocrite.”

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**Author:** ![El\_Zagna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d2c977/32.png) [@El\_Zagna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Zagna)\
**Post date:** [November 12, 2012, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-name-calling/640775/5 "2012-11-12T17:28:36Z")

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Well, I certainly agree that my response could have been better, and I regret even starting with the “height of hypocrisy” remark.

One of the differences my case and **Bryan Ekers’** example is that the first response from Other Guy, “Well, you can put me there” was vague enough that it really needed confirmation that what I thought he was saying was what he intended to say. Actually I can’t remember the exact quote because Other Guy tends to write somewhat garbled stuff.

**Marley23** , this probably should have been posted to ATMB to begin with. Sorry.