Logic v Emotion

I've been noticing a trend lately, thanks to Laura for pointing it out. I always knew it was there, but I never pinpointed what it was til she clarified it for me. Some people can't be reasoned with, that's a fact I've always known. But now I think I understand why.

Emotions play a large role in blocking logic from taking place. Some people allow their emotions to rule everything they do, and don't tend to look at anything logically.

Case in point, the argument over the right to die. I'm strongly for it, because why should someone who is terminally ill and has no hope of living be forced to outlive the rest of their days if they don't choose too? But even though I'm passionate about this, I have the ability to look at all sides logically. Some people view any termination of life as immoral, and I get that. Therefore I realize that this is a multifaceted issue that doesn't have a simple answer. I still feel with my gut that my stance is the right choice, but the logical side of me is capable of seeing all sides and why some people might feel the way they feel. So I don't push the issue. I'll make my stance on something known, but if they start getting emotional instead of logical, I typically back off. There's no reasoning with them if they let emotion rule.

There are times where the emotion is so strong that it would be a dick move for me to push the issue. For example, my anti-death penalty stance is in direct contrast to my friend's pro-death penalty stance. I'm not gonna name his name, but he's witnessed a murder and lost a family member to a break in that turned into a murder. He's been strongly impacted by the actions of others, and I realize that he's passionate about his stances because of this. I'm not saying that his arguments aren't logical, but because of how easily he could slip into emotion and get upset about the issue, I respectfully don't debate him. That would be a dick move, and he's got the right to his opinion. After all, who am I to pick at someone's emotional wounds?

But some people who don't have such strong emotional ties to issues are capable of using only emotion and not logic to look at an argument through only their own perspective, and feel very strongly that there should be and cannot be any other option. These people cannot be reasoned with, and it's because they use emotion to rule their feelings instead of logic.

It can be hard to live based on logic and not emotion. I'm trying to do it, but there are instances where it can be hard. For my own betterment, I feel that this is the right move and will lead to a less stressful and more fulfilled life. But this is my choice, based on my own logical analysis. It does make me angry when people make erroneous assumptions about what I say to them because their emotions got in the way and told them that I was saying something that I never even implied. It's hard to bite my tongue when that happens.

But there's no arguing with illogical people.