Predict the winners of the following hypothetical debates

[emax]

See if you can predict who would win in debates among the following political and/or intellectual figures if they were to debate and if you know who they are (so just skipping over the ones if you don't know both of them):

Sam Harris v Sam Seder

Ben Shapiro v Sam Seder

Jordan Peterson v Sam Seder

Sam Harris v John Oliver

Ben Shapiro v John Oliver

Jordan Peterson v John Oliver

Ron Paul v Thom Hartmann

Ben Shapiro v Thom Hartmann

Jordan Peterson v Bill Maher

Jordan Peterson v Noam Chomsky

Ben Shapiro v Paul Krugman

Thomas Sowell v Thom Hartmann

Thomas Sowell v Noam Chomsky

 

[tonni]

Jordan Peterson v Noam Chomsky

Chomsky by miles

 

[curryjunkie]

I predict the dump

 

[PrinceOfPain]

Topics?
Kinda hard to guess who'd win without knowing the areas of knowledge they'd be debating.

 

[PrinceOfPain]

Chomsky by miles

Why?

 

[Billy no mates]

What are they debating Pepsi vs Coca Cola ? .

 

[Rational Poster]

Why?

Chomsky is one of the preeminent scholars of our lifetime and Jordan Peterson is just a psychologist with a personality cult.

 

[emax]

Topics?
Kinda hard to guess who'd win without knowing the areas of knowledge they'd be debating.

What are they debating Pepsi vs Coca Cola ? .

For practical purposes, let's say it was a topic that most of them have passion about. For example, debating the merits of America and the West in general as a leader in global affairs or the merits of American individualist based capitalism and enterprise as opposed to the merits of a much more centralized system with way more regulations and universal healthcare and tuition free college for everyone. Or whether or not US foreign policy as opposed to fundamental problems with religious culture in the Islamic world are causing the majority of the strife there. Something along those lines, if that can help to determine it.

Chomsky is one of the preeminent scholars of our lifetime and Jordan Peterson is just a psychologist with a personality cult.

Chomsky is a massively important star in linguistics and Peterson is massively important in specific areas in psychology; otherwise he wouldn't have been teaching at Harvard and then Toronto. So the issue is how good they are when they go outside their best areas of expertise.

 

[Deleted member 457759]

Oliver loses all of his debates.

 

[Happiness]

Chomsky, Seder, Hartmann sweep.

 

[Deleted member 457759]

Chomsky is one of the preeminent scholars of our lifetime and Jordan Peterson is just a psychologist with a personality cult.

Peterson ran a successful practice in the free market where results matter, that can't be overlooked when comparing to someone who hasn't produced tangible results for anything.

 

[emax]

Peterson ran a successful practice in the free market where results matter, that can't be overlooked when comparing to someone who hasn't produced tangible results for anything.

In fairness, as I noted above, in the area of linguistics, Chomsky is an intellectual giant as Peterson is in psychology. Those are the areas they are objectively great in. Outside that, I imagine that is where it gets much more subjective in determining how good they do.

 

[PrinceOfPain]

Chomsky is one of the preeminent scholars of our lifetime and Jordan Peterson is just a psychologist with a personality cult.

The fact that you think that Chomsky would come out on top, no matter what the discussion was about, is a strong indication that this is just more irrational twaddle from you.
If I wanted irrational twaddle, I'd have tagged you.

You might notice that I didn't.

For practical purposes, let's say it was a topic that most of them have passion about. For example, debating the merits of America and the West in general as a leader in global affairs or the merits of American individualist based capitalism and enterprise as opposed to the merits of a much more centralized system with way more regulations and universal healthcare and tuition free college for everyone. Or whether or not US foreign policy as opposed to fundamental problems with religious culture in the Islamic world are causing the majority of the strife there. Something along those lines, if that can help to determine it.

Thank you, sir. I'll think on it, but it is a little tough still. Mostly just to think of issues about which some of these guys would clearly stand opposed to one another.

 

[Billy no mates]

Oliver loses all of his debates.

Yes I suspect he's not near as clever as he makes out .

 

[emax]

The fact that you think that Chomsky would come out on top, no matter what the discussion was about, is a strong indication that this is just more irrational twaddle from you.
If I wanted irrational twaddle, I'd have tagged you.

You might notice that I didn't.



Thank you, sir. I'll think on it, but it is a little tough still. Mostly just to think of issues about which some of these guys would clearly stand opposed to one another.

Thanks for considering it. This is actually one of the few places I've seen that has contributors who can give some semblance of objectively evaluating this independently of how they feel about anyone's personal cultural, religious or social views. In a lot of other areas,the answer to who would win the OP debates would be based entirely on personal views of both contestants, regardless of whether the topic was an important sociopolitical issue or whether or not GSP has done enough to surpass Fedor as the greatest fighter ever.

 

[Happiness]

In fairness, as I noted above, in the area of linguistics, Chomsky is an intellectual giant as Peterson is in psychology. Those are the areas they are objectively great in. Outside that, I imagine that is where it gets much more subjective in determining how good they do.

Peterson is not an intellectual giant in psychology by any measure.

 

[Happiness]

Peterson ran a successful practice in the free market where results matter, that can't be overlooked when comparing to someone who hasn't produced tangible results for anything.

Did you just say Chomsky lacks results? Would you care to stack up Chomsky's academic works and contributions with Peterson?

Hint; they are not in the same universe. Peterson isn't a serious figure in the Psyc world, Chomsky is well, Chomsky.

 

[RubberGuard5]

What constitutes a win in these debates? How persuasive they are to the audience? Validity of the arguments? Whether the arguments they make are sound?

 

[EL CORINTHIAN]

Chomsky is one of the preeminent scholars of our lifetime and Jordan Peterson is just a psychologist with a personality cult.

Lol

 

[emax]

What constitutes a win in these debates? How persuasive they are to the audience? Validity of the arguments? Whether the arguments they make are sound?

Validity and persuasiveness to an audience that is neutral and objective enough that they aren't just looking to have existing beliefs confirmed. Which to be sure may be particularly hard to gauge.