It is known that the best way to win the dispute is to avoid it. Personally, I try to follow this advice. Of course, there are people of the opposite temperament. In ancient times, they were called “brilliant polemicists.” It is a skill that must be in a human being, and which, of course, can be developed. Western colleges have special courses and clubs, where the teenagers are competing with each other in rhetoric, and the winners receive prizes.
They tell that Arshak Sadoyan was bringing his friends to “Paplavok” or “Skvaznyak”, and requesting them, “let’s argue about something.” It does not matter about what, they wanted to train the brain and the word by “kneeling” and “defeating” your opponent so that people next to you would say, “Well done, bro, you scored 10 to 0.” This was the place where the political idea of the future Third republic was refined. I, repeat, am not a fan of those things, because I doubt that, at least in Armenia, the dispute results in truth. Animosity arouses in us, or, at best, normal relationships become too cold. Let’s take at least the issue of Mikoyan’s statue. What? Did the dispute between supporters and opponents of the statue give birth to truth? It did not. It just became another reason of instilling animosity in Armenians, even in Mikoyan’s grandchildren. I’m surprised at the Yerevan City Council, which had made such time delayed decision. Or, let’s take the dispute over the Customs Union (EurAsEC). Did the dispute result in any “customs” to become an “EU” or vice versa?
Or, what kind of truth was born? That a part of our society is an “imperialist slave”, and the other part – a European, to say the least, homosexual? Do we need such “truth”? No, you said you opinion, now step aside, especially since, unfortunately, everything is decided for us. No, I stand for possible elimination of all disputes. When the readers of “Aravot” online go beyond all bounds, we do not post their comments. True, they sometimes complain saying, “Well, and what about the freedom of expression.” However, it is better to do so than to inflame passions. When an excessively thoughtful party member starts explaining me on the Facebook what a bad person I am and how I carry out the orders of his party “enemies”, I just block this party member. It’s all the same, such dispute results in nothing.
ARAM ABRAHAMYAN
