Sure, opinions don't need substantiation to be what they are (I can see how what I wrote is incorrect/absurd in the literal sense) - I was trying to say that without attempting to argue their truth/fact they are of little value, and so I wondered why you posted as you did. I get that sometimes it is just nice to express ourselves, our feelings, thoughts and opinions. Yet surely you see how I might wish you had given it some more context for me to derive meaning from. Stating that, "If done properly, controller > kb/m every single day" offers me nothing to allow me to believe what you say. Was this statement meant to be taken literally, or was it an expression of personal taste? Was it meant to troll people? How firmly do you hold this opinion? I am left wondering.
I understand what you're saying, but again...since
I am the one that said it, without any other information, it should be assumed that what
I'm saying is my opinion.
I also posted the way I did in response to some of the other comments in this thread...none of which, BTW, were called out in the same way mine were. Case in point: "If you want to play with a controller (2nd rate form of controlling games) play PS3 and Xbox games."
Again, I agree that it is not always necessary for you to elaborate for others to ascertain that this is indeed your opinion. I agree that opinions are often self-evident. I am not suggesting that we always need to announce our opinions for them to be recognized, nor am I criticising your original post (I already said I had no issue with it). I am simply arguing that phrases like 'in my opinion' have value beyond their apparent tautological use, and that you might have communicated more effectively had you used that or another similar phrase to provide more meaning to your statement.
This assumes, though, that my goal was to communicate effectively. Because it was an opinion, I don't care whether it was communicated effectively or not. I was simply sharing my opinion on the topic, in response to the many other opinions that were also offered here. Efficacy never crossed my mind (nor, I would argue, should it have).
More to the point of our contention, I am claiming that opinions are not always self-evident, for example when the use of sarcasm implies the opposite, or when making a more complicated statement such as,'The Aboriginals of Australia are well known to have a rich cultural history', which by itself doesn't necessarily indicate this is also the author's opinion, beyond the opinion/claim that it is well known. So yes, sometimes opinions need to, or can benefit from, being clarified.
Agreed. I do not believe that this is one of those cases, as it was neither sarcastic nor a complicated statement. It was clear, to the point, and overt...exactly what I intended it to be/say.
I was not disputing the self-evidence of your stated opinion. I was simply trying to add something relevant to the discussion, however unfortunately my original response did not make any literal sense which may have muddied the waters.
I understand.
Yes, I 'think' ;-) I can see the problem, however the risk of having arguments interpreted merely as trying to prove one is right shouldn't stop us from engaging in them with each other. No one is obligated to defend their opinion on a public forum either, however surely you can't be surprised when people may want you to do so, especially when raising such a contentious topic as peripheral supremacy. Regardless, if you're damned if you do and damned if you don't, it is up to you whether you want to say anything substantial or not.
Fair enough. And...as stated above, it is not of remote concern to me whether people want me to defend my opinion (especially when the only similar defense of the alternate opinions is a list of games in which controller support was implemented poorly...which has nothing to do with my original statement, since I clearly articulated, "if done properly").
As I stated earlier in my post, the use of sarcasm and making complicated statements can sometimes create the need for clarity. Additionally, the context into which a statement is made can make the use of such qualifying phrases useful. For example when, posting an unsubstantiated contentious statement and not wishing to be mistaken for arrogant. Granted, this only necessitates a qualifying phrase (albeit a tautology or something similar) if your goal is to avoid having your tone misinterpreted.
Sorry...I meant "why do they need to" in the context of someone stating an opinion, not in general.
Out of control? In some instances yes, like for example a response you received ITT! Personally, I generally have a greater problem with people lacking a polite tone, clarity and substantiation in their forum discourse than I do people going over the top qualifying their statements, though YMMV. I do wish that it didn't feel so necessary for me to qualify what I say at times and I do agree it can be a real problem.
I generally don't have an issue with polite tones, clarity, and/or substantiation, for all of the reasons I mentioned above, namely that clarity and substantiation seem unnecessary for the statement of an opinion (also, tone can be easily read into anything, accurately or...more often, I would argue...inaccurately). And, if we're honest, all of the posts in this thread about controller support have been opinions. It's not like anyone offered any truly substantive affirmation of their perspective. Nor, I would contend, should they have to. But I hear where you're coming from.
