Is it useless to speak in generalities?

Question

It's certainly helpful if you generalize that people are not going to try to kill you, and that food from the grocery store is safe to eat. Those of you who think there is no place for generalities need to think a little harder.

You make assumptions all the time just to live your life.

Doc: You state that it's laden with logic problems, but you don't explain what they are.

Answer 1

Generalities are a very important part of life, how we categorize things, and how we expect others to behave. They are important elements in argument and logic, they are critical for predicting events, and are otherwise an indispensable, necessary part of life.

General statements usually have truth to them, but it's important to note that there are exceptions to every generality. In general SUVs have low gas mileage. Now there may be a few exceptions (or there may not) but such a generalization is important to take into account when purchasing a car, or otherwise trying to select an ideal choice from the lot. In California there are an estimated 12 million illegal immigrants, the overwhelming majority of these are Mexican. This is a generality, but it's true. If you see an illegal immigrant in Cali it's most likely going to be a Mexican. Maybe it's not "fair" or "PC" but it's accurate.

Generalities allow us to make predictions with reasonable accuracy - such as that a woman is likely to be more emotional than a man.

Statistics also demonstrate reliable generalizations. Statistically a randomly selected atheist is 300% less likely to have an STD than a random christian. Are there atheists with stds? Certainly. But it's a fair assumption that most don't have one.

Ultimately, generalities are reliable most of the time - enough for us to make predictions. Of course this doesn't stop people from becoming upset if they're lumped into a particular category or they feel they're being "unfairly" generalized. Of course even if it's unfair or insulting, it could still be true.

Answer 2

I think it depends on the specifics of the generality... When asking a question, it is also a reasonable expectation of the asker to clarify any specific points that might be exceptions, unless of course the question deals with exceptions to a general rule

In respect to your question on leading and narcissism, that was a question laden with logic problems.

So, try asking a cleaner question. Like this one :)

Answer 3

Generalizations are fine, until they become personally driven by insults. Then, not so much.