07-15-2010, 03:41 PM
Mr Downtown wrote:
Well, how would you suggest adding a hint of indirectness to an oppositional statement? It's a softener, a sign that you don't want to be entirely adversarial with your response. Especially online, writing "well, I don't think you're correct about that" is less abrupt and confrontational than simply writing "you're not correct about that." I may be just as confident of my facts or position, but I don't want you to leave the discussion.
I often use "OK" at the beginning of sentences as a softener. For me it conveys "I hear you..."
"OK, and then..."
"OK, but what if..."
"OK, let's see how it goes..."