Also - this kind of thing, where one is persuaded not at the level of belief, but at the level of 'topic of interest' is one place where I think persuasion has a role on forums like these. Some of my most consequential shifts in thought haven't been from changing an already held position, but having an interest aroused where it would not have done otherwise.
To put it in terms I like to use: I've been persuaded about questions, not answers. The most interesting interactions on the forum are not - are never - 'oh you're right', but 'oh I didn't think about that'. — StreetlightX
Forum discussions have a peculiarity in that the form is private, while the arena is public. We tend to argue in an informal way without a real arbiter or even preset rules, like arguments are done in the private sphere — Ying
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