Hummus....the crazy man's queso. I like queso...
Hmmm...is that a debate or a discussion? (Actually, for the record, I think hummus is fine too
)
I agree with a previous poster that this topic is a concern that the nerdfury over in TV land threads has created. I also agree that the nerdfury will die down eventually.
To me, there is no problem either with debate or discussion, it's all in the tone. And that can be the hardest thing to monitor, because the written word lends itself to be misinterpreted without facial expressions or voice inflections. What one person thinks is a riviting debate on a topic, might be seen as an attack by someone else. This is the trickiest part of internet chatting, trying to create the appropriate tone in your posts to convey what you're trying to say. That's one reason smileys are so important.
See, there is a world of difference between:
Man, you're one crazy fool!
and
Man, you're one crazy fool!
So, I guess my advice is to not try and separate discussion and debate (because no one will ever agree on what they mean...which is a debate, right?), but instead, to use more goofy smiley faces.