# Should I pipe in to let people know I'm interested in the debate? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [August 2, 2020, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-pipe-in-to-let-people-know-im-interested-in-the-debate/917063 "2020-08-02T06:40:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2020, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-pipe-in-to-let-people-know-im-interested-in-the-debate/917063/1 "2020-08-02T06:40:49Z")
A large part of my participation here - for better or for worse - is for exposure to people with different points of view. People like you! I will often come across a debate that I don’t want to heavily participate in, but find extremely interesting nonetheless. I’ll subscribe to the ~~thread~~ topic, or rather I won’t unsubscribe (these days Discourse will automatically watch topics I have read). Should I go that extra step and let you know I’m interested in the debate? I used to think it would be more appropriate to just sit on the sidelines and watch. But all too often the conversation dies or moves in a different direction. I’ve toyed with picking up torches but let’s face it, it’s a lot of work (and introduces a lot of bias) to prep for a debate on someone else’s side, and I’ll never be as good as the real deal. Now I’m thinking, maybe I should just step in and say, “hey, that’s a really interesting point”. “I would love to read an argument against this”. Or pointing out _little_ parts I agree with, or maybe parts I disagree with, without fully hijacking the thread with my own viewpoint. (Defending my personal viewpoint has the tendency to hijack the whole thread.) I am not suggesting that anybody is under any kind of obligation to continue a debate for my viewing pleasure. Although I must admit that my motivation for piping in would in fact be to encourage people to continue a debate for my viewing pleasure… and I have mixed feelings about that. I recently tried this approach in the topic, “_[For those who think the 2nd Amendment is for defending us against a tyrannical government](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/916560/36)_”. What do you think? Good idea? Please no? ~Max ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2020, 8:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-pipe-in-to-let-people-know-im-interested-in-the-debate/917063/2 "2020-08-02T08:56:51Z")
Just jump on in. The water is fine. And if you get ignored or the thread dies after you post. Don’t take it personally. It happens to all of us. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2020, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-pipe-in-to-let-people-know-im-interested-in-the-debate/917063/3 "2020-08-02T12:05:14Z")
It’s certainly culturally acceptable around here to pipe in. We don’t much care for just “I liked it” or “Go on …”, but a few sentences that show you actually read what’s been written is seen as a positive contribution. Each thread has a natural lifetime that’s unpredictable. Trying to revitalize one that’s obviously flagging but hasn’t beaten the horse quit into burger yet is a good thing. But … The later you are and the slower the thread has become, the bigger jolt of wake-up it’ll take to get it moving again. If you’re ill-disposed to put much effort into your quick-get-the-paddles! post, you’ll likely fail. If you’re not willing to spend a few paragraphs pushing a particular POV you could at least Google up a couple useful cites or articles. We’d all gain from the fruits of your research. ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2020, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-pipe-in-to-let-people-know-im-interested-in-the-debate/917063/4 "2020-08-02T12:05:19Z")
Now that the board is on Discourse, I wish they would turn on the like button. A like is the perfect action to communicate “I appreciate your comment but have nothing further to add to this conversation”. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2020, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-pipe-in-to-let-people-know-im-interested-in-the-debate/917063/5 "2020-08-02T12:08:18Z")
Now _that’s_ a well-worn religious war around here. I’ll gladly take up the banner for the opposing view on that one. “Likes” are pure clutter and encourage nothing but laziness. I suppose I would not mind (much) if they didn’t appear as posts, but simply incremented some visible counter on the relevant post/thread. But a “like” button that results in a post, or worse yet a post with a full-body quote, are anathema. Og smash! ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2020, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-pipe-in-to-let-people-know-im-interested-in-the-debate/917063/6 "2020-08-02T20:18:07Z")
**LSLGuy** : “like” (grin!) (Seriously, I agree, “Like” buttons and counters are not really in the SDMB theme, which is more based on dialogue and content.) ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2020, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-pipe-in-to-let-people-know-im-interested-in-the-debate/917063/7 "2020-08-02T20:19:59Z")
A few “I like your reasoning here” or “Good argument!” lines go a long way. ---
**Author:** ![superwombat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superwombat/32/16616_2.png) [@superwombat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/superwombat)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2020, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-pipe-in-to-let-people-know-im-interested-in-the-debate/917063/8 "2020-08-02T20:25:32Z")
As a long time lurker, there have been a few fascinating threads that could have been encouraged to continue had there been some audience reaction. At least it would show someone else values the conversation