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On the other hand on this web site at least I think people ask questions passive aggressively at times.

Instead of honestly saying "I think you are wrong because..." they passive aggressively pretends they are "just asking questions."

Of course on non controversial topics a question is likely to just be a question.

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There are certainly lines you don't want to cross if you want to avoid conflicts, and there are ways to ask questions nicely. Maybe it's a professional bias, but when you work in research or engineering, I think it's pretty normal to ask questions or push back on strong claims without proofs, without necessarily sounding like a jerk.

I think I managed to upset people on several occasions as I was just genuinely trying to understand their opinion on some topics.

Or people who pick a nit and then when it turns out the nit they picked wasn't even a nit, they double down and pick an even smaller it and split ever smaller hairs because they just cannot function if they don't "Win" every discussion

It's insane how reluctant some people are just to say "Oh maybe I was wrong or misunderstood"

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