Arguments

I started thinking about arguments recently. Arguments are debates between people when both sides differ on what they think or believe. During arguments, people try to come up with reasons to persuade other people that they are right. Is that a bad thing? Not necessarily. When people want someone to see their point of view, it's okay to argue a bit. For example, if I believe global warming is an issue, I can argue that global warming is real and we should do more to prevent it. Arguments that are used to inform people of important issues are fine. What I have a problem with is when pointless subjects are argued over. A huge issue that is always debated is religion. I see it all the time. People argue religion vs. science or religion vs. religion and it's so pointless. Both sides are wasting their time and energy to get absolutely nothing done. Think about it for a second- how often do people actually change their mind about religion? Every time I see an argument like this it bothers me because there really is no point to arguing something that no one is going to act on. Arguments are made to persuade other people of something, but if you can't persuade anyone why argue? There is no purpose to arguing if you cannot persuade or convince someone. I may sound quite harsh, but don't get me wrong. I am not saying you shouldn't believe in something. Of course you should. Having a belief or opinion on something is not wrong at all. Trying to argue with other people that you are right is not helpful. So does this mean we should never talk about touchy subjects like religion? I don't think it has to be. I talk about religion with people and it's fine. What's the difference? I don't argue with people. We simply discuss. Before you talk about something like religion, it is important that both you and the person you are talking to understand that you aren't trying to change any beliefs. With that in mind it is so much easier to have a conversation. Topics that are often argued are usually quite interesting to me- but not when they are argued over. I don't understand why people can't just accept that other people believe in something other than you do and it's not that much of an issue. I think we need to stop trying to argue over pointless subjects and let people believe what they believe. Arguing is useless (most of the time).
-Smart