20 Years ago...

[Aramike]

Originally Posted by Letum

If it is complicated then either A) I am wrong, in which case it should be simple
to show me which of my premises is wrong or why the argument is logically
invalid. Or B) It reflects a complex reality.

I've already showed you.

You just did what you always do - reject any logic that contradicts a flawed point you made at an earlier point.

Again:

Loss of human life = Tragedy.

Greater = higher number.

Therefore, "Greater tragedy" means higher number of human lives lost.

Seriously, you are so far off base that it is surprising that someone of your intellectual fortitude won't grasp this concept, although this seems to be a recurring theme. Frankly, I think you are simply refusing to acknowledge that you may have been mistaken in the original post you made regarding this subject. You are asking all of us to show you how your arguments are wrong, while neglecting to show us how the opposite is true.

Stubborness only goes so far, and is the trademark of a weak mind.

[Letum]

Originally Posted by Aramike

Again:

Loss of human life = Tragedy.

Greater = higher number.

Therefore, "Greater tragedy" means higher number of human lives lost.

That's not a refutation of what I'm saying. It doesn't show where or why I am
wrong, if you think I am. All you have done is provide your two definitions of
concepts. You can't prove any idea right or wrong using a dictionary.
I could not prove Einstein wrong by saying:

Light = Instant
Speed = Not instant
Therefore light does not have any speed.

Or that the world is flat by saying:

Sky = Up
Up = One direction
Therefore the sky must always be up in the same direction and the world must be flat.

[AngusJS]

Originally Posted by UnderseaLcpl

But when it comes to mass murders, human rights abuses, and general maltreatment of one's own populace, nobody beats the Stalinists. Not even the Nazis.
At least the Chinese were nice enough to wait for students to protest before killing them. Soviet academia was afforded no such luxury, and joined tens of millions in the Gulag, where they pretty much all died of exposure or starvation or being worked to death. The lucky hundreds of thousands were just shot, or hanged.

I think the Khmer Rouge was the worst of all. Even while millions of Soviet citizens were being sent off to the gulags, for most people, life went on. Compare that to Cambodia, where the entire population was forced into communes, where you could be killed for wearing glasses (because that meant you were an intellectual), and where 20% of the population was executed or starved to death.

[UnderseaLcpl]

Originally Posted by AngusJS

I think the Khmer Rouge was the worst of all. Even while millions of Soviet citizens were being sent off to the gulags, for most people, life went on. Compare that to Cambodia, where the entire population was forced into communes, where you could be killed for wearing glasses (because that meant you were an intellectual), and where 20% of the population was executed or starved to death.

I tend to lump the Khmer Rouge in with Stalinists, but you're absolutely right, that was a nightmare regime if there ever was one.

[Aramike]

Originally Posted by Letum

That's not a refutation of what I'm saying. It doesn't show where or why I am
wrong, if you think I am. All you have done is provide your two definitions of
concepts. You can't prove any idea right or wrong using a dictionary.
I could not prove Einstein wrong by saying:

Light = Instant
Speed = Not instant
Therefore light does not have any speed.

Or that the world is flat by saying:

Sky = Up
Up = One direction
Therefore the sky must always be up in the same direction and the world must be flat.

Umm, I'm not bothering to try to refute what you're saying. What you're doing is attempting to refute what others are saying. You're not completely wrong, but neither are those who believe a tragedy of greater numbers can be communicated as a greater tragedy.

And yes, a dictionary CAN prove an idea right or wrong, if that idea is communication.

I think you've taken this to the point where I don't think myself or anyone else can take you seriously and further on it. Sorry, dude - but when someone says "greater tragedy", almost all of us understand the concept. And that's the point.