EXPLAIN TO AVOID ARGUMENTS

                                                  EXPLANATIONS POWER

        IS IT NOT QUITE EVIDENT THAT THE SPEAKER WHO ARGUES WITH HIS AUDIENCE IS MERELY AROUSING THEIR STUBBORNNESS, PUTTING THEM ON THE DEFENSIVE, MAKING IT WELL NIGH IMPOSSIBLE FOR THEM TO CHANGE THEIR MINDS? IS IT WISE TO START BY SAYING, " I AM GOING TO PROVE SO AND SO ?" AREN'T YOURS HEARERS LIABLE TO ACCEPT THAT AS A CHALLENGE AND REMARK SILENTLY, "LETS SEE YOU DO IT".

         IS IT NOT MUCH MORE ADVANTAGEOUS TO BEGIN BY STRESSING SOMETHING THAT YOU AND ALL OF YOUR HEARERS BELIEVE, AND THEN TO RAISE SOME PERTINENT QUESTION THAT EVERYONE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE ANSWERED? THEN TAKE YOUR AUDIENCE WITH YOU IN AN EARNEST SEARCH FOR THE ANSWER. WHILE ON THAT SEARCH, PRESENT THE FACTS AS YOU SEE THEM SO CLEALY THAT THEY WILL UNCONSCIOUSLY BE LED TO ACCEPT YOUR CONCLUSIONS AS THEIR OWN. THEY WILL HAVE MUCH MORE FAITH IN SOME TRUTH THAT THEY BELIEVE THEY HAVE DISCOVERED FOR THEMSELVES. THE BEST ARGUMENT IS THAT WHICH SEEMS MERELY AN EXPLANATION.

         IN EVERY CONSTROVERSY, NO MATTER HOW WIDE AND BITTER THE DIFFERENCES, THERE IS ALWAYS SOME COMMAN GROUND OF AGREEMENT ON WHICH THE SPEAKER CAN INVITE EVERYONE TO ASSEMBLE FOR THE SEARCH AFTER FACTS THAT HE IS GOING TO CONDUCT. TO ILLUSTRATE, EVEN IF THE HEAD OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY WERE ADDRESSING A CONVENTION OF THE BANKERS ASSOCIATION, HE COULD FIND SOME MUTUAL BELIEFS, SOME ANALOGOUS DESIRES TO SHARE WITH HIS HEARERS. COULDN'T HE? LET US SEE:

       POVERTY HAS ALWAYS BEEN ONE OF THE CRUEL PROBLEMS OF HUMAN SOCIETY. WE HAVE ALWAYS FELT IT OUR DUTY TO ALLEVIATE, WHENEVER AND WHEREVER POSSIBLE, THE SUFFERINGS OF THE POOR. WE AE A GENEROUS NATION. NO OTHER PEOPLE IN ALL HISTORY HAVE POURED OUT THEIR WEALTH SO PRODIGALLY, SO UNSELFISHLY TO HELP THE UNFORTUNATE, NOW, WITH THIS SAME MENTAL GENEROSITY AND SPIRITUAL UNSELFISHNESS THAT HAS CHARACTERIZED OUR GIVINGS IN THE PAST, LET US EXAMINE TOGETHER THE FACTS OF OUR INDUSTRIAL LIFE AND SEE IF WE CAN FIND SOME MEANS, OUR INDUSTRIAL LIFE AND JUST AND ACCEPTANCE TO ALL, THAT WILL TEND TO PREVENT AS WELL AS TO MITIGATE THE EVILS OF POVERTY.

         WHO COULD OBJECT TO THAT? COULD FATHER COUGHLIN, OR NORMAN THOMAS, OR J. PIERPONT MORGAN? HARDLY.

          DO WE SEEM TO BE CONTRADICTING HERE THE GOSPEL OF FORCE AND ENERGY AND ENTHUSIASM? HARDLY, HERE IS A TIME FOR EVERYTHING, BUT THE TIME FOR FORCE IS SELDOM IN THE BEGINNING OF A TALK. TACT IS MORE LIKELY TO BE NEEDED THEN.