

Stephen Fry on binary choices - grellas
http://www.stephenfry.com/2009/09/18/a-tale-of-two-cities/

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naner
I often find myself in agreement with Fry's seemingly incompatible interests.
Like his appreciation for the Free Software movement[1] as well as Apple's
achievements[2].

[1]: <http://www.gnu.org/fry/>

[2]: <http://www.stephenfry.com/2010/01/28/ipad-about/>

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shadowsun7
C.S.Lewis has had some clever things to say on the topic. There's this
brilliant paragraph in _Mere_ _Christianity_ that goes:

"… so many people cannot be brought to realise that when B is better than C, A
may be even better than B. They like thinking in terms of good and bad, not of
good, better, and best, or bad, worse and worst. They want to know whether you
think patriotism a good thing: if you reply that it is, of course, far better
than individual selfishness, but that it is inferior to universal charity and
should always give way to universal charity when the two conflict, they think
you are being evasive."

Think this applies here, too.

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CapitalistCartr
Wow, do I know his feeling. I call it 'Coke/Pepsi' binary thinking. The notion
that the World is essentially binary, instead of a multi-dimensional varied
landscape of gradients.

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Legion
I hear you. I loved Coke and hated Pepsi. But then Throwback Pepsi comes along
and it's like, my mind is blown.

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lurkinggrue
My problem with Pepsi is I am not fond of the taste of Pepto-Bismol.

But then on the whole Coke/Pepsi argument I am more a Dr. Pepper drinker.

~~~
pasbesoin
Wintergreen mint

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RiderOfGiraffes
I'm reminded of this, written in May, 2007:

<http://www.solipsys.co.uk/new/TwoAndAHalfMen.html?HN>

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Gormo
Interesting article, especially in referencing "The Two Cultures", which I had
not encountered before.

Modern "Geek" culture actually seems very adept at bridging that gap.

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philiac
"You just quoted Family Guy" - I thought you liked The Simpsons

I don't see how this relates to the rest of the examples.

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adbge
The implication is that if you enjoy Family Guy, you must not like The
Simpsons, while his point is that it is perfectly reasonable that one could
enjoy both.

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philiac
The joke I was making is many people are Simpsons purists and say Family Guy
is complete crap.

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mrvir
Never lived in the US, but getting an impression that the political system
also contributes to this binary syndrome.

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pointernil
When attending a serious dispute, try to throw in

"You\We are both right!" Helps wonders.

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mrtron
Other languages seem to have less binary options too.

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campnic
I think you are right. I think that an issue here is the assumed "more then
others" so the question "Do you like the Beatles?" carries the connotation "Do
you like the Beatles more than other bands?" Its a nuance of the language I
think rather then an attempt to lock someone into an either or situation.

