Discussion Forum

A discussion forum in CF is a public, moderated online space for criticism and debate. CF treats forums as essential infrastructure for Paths Forward.

The CF forum

• discuss.criticalfallibilism.com — the CF forum.
• Public. Anyone can read.
• Moderated. Rules about debate conduct.
• Structured. Categories, tags, trees.

What forums enable

• Open criticism. Post a refutation; receive one.
• Idea organisation. Use discussion trees for long threads.
• Time efficiency. Read what you want; reply when useful.
• Meta discussion. How to have the discussion.

Why forums, not just comments

• Comments get lost. Forum threads persist.
• Comments lack structure. Forums allow tagging, edits, organisation.
• Comments are anonymous. Forums allow identity (with fallibilist accountability).

Anti-patterns

• Echo chambers. Forums that ban critics.
• Private moderation. Forum owners that suppress criticism secretly.
• Permanent archives. No way to update outdated claims.
• Endless meta-level arguments. Discussion about discussion.

CF forum etiquette

• Be specific. Quote what you're criticising.
• Be objective.: Reasoning that strangers could follow.
• Stay on the IGC. Don't drift to meta too quickly.
• Update when refuted. Mark your claims as refuted.
• Use trees for complex threads.

"Projects, Activities and Using Discussion Forums" is one of CF's named themes. — criticalfallibilism.com