I'd say the opposite -- it's something which is useful in the real world, regardless of if I'd use the same labels for it as Paul does. There are some topics that tend towards people talking past each other. This is one of them. How many people do you think have read this thread and changed their opinion on the worth of college? Few, if any. Most people are just rehashing decisions they made years ago -- just like every two weeks when we have this discussion all over again.
Why does a group of people who by and large have already made this decision -- and won't be making it again -- find it so worthwhile to keep debating it? Probably because explaining the choice they made makes them feel better about themselves.
The problem with that viewpoint, in my opinion, is that it's a throwaway: instead of figuring out the problem, simply categorize something as "unproductive to talk about" and ignore it.
Whether or not the conversation is boring is another matter entirely. Obviously somebody posted the article, so it means something to somebody. After a while, I'm going to stop reading all these college vs. no college articles. So will everyone else, I imagine. Nature will take it's toll.
I trust my fellow posters to come on here with an open mind. That's not out of any kindness on my part -- it's simply a practical matter. There's no point in posting anything at all if you're just talking past one another.
We're talking. See? Obviously both of us feel that there is some information that is being exchanged that is worthwhile about some tangential part of this topic.
I think I come at this from the standpoint of having to work with people all day long that have strong opinions about technology. If I had an option of simply ignoring subjects that my clients found difficult to come to grips with, my work would be a lot easier. And nothing would get done.
Yes. There are some topics that people tend to talk past each other. Those are the most important ones to talk about. What? You want to spend your time on things nobody feels strongly about? As long as the chat is productive, bring it on. If it's not productive, downvote it, ignore it, and move on. Just like anything else that's not worthy of your or my time.
EDIT: I don't want to look like I'm changing my opinion, so what I mean is that there are some topics that people tend to associate directly with their judgment and self-worth. Religion is one of those. Politics is another. But gee, it can be anything. This emotional entanglement is just a part of human nature and is part of real-world conversations.
Useful discussion is that which has the ability to inform decision, generally. Out of 54 comments here, 52 are from people who seem to be past this point and the other 2 seem to already know what they want to do. It'd be cute to think that those other 52 are really doing it for the good of the remaining 2, but do you really believe that?
If this were say, one of the many discussions about database tech, caching and whatnot -- even though we've got a lot of experts in those fields people still change their minds, are open to new view points, and use that information to make future decisions.
This is like the girl I'm dating and I arguing over which of our home countries has the best food. We're arguing over formative experiences that have just become part of who we are. It's cute banter, but really not more. Just because we're going to continually disagree, and we're both throughly convinced of our rightness, doesn't mean that it's an important thing for us to keep discussing.
I learned that college excels at helping people hook up with cofounders -- I hadn't thought of that is such clear terms before today (and I immediately stole the idea and commented with it!) Since I am in search of a cofounder, now I will begin thinking about using college as an avenue to do that. Not life changing, just yet, but it made a difference.
Others have pointed out learning things from the conversation, including the person who posted the article.
For you, perhaps, it seems like old hat and re-hash, and it has that faint whiff for me too, but every now and then a little glimmer of light shines through. That's why longer posts are usually better than short ones -- you're more likely to stumble on an area that nobody has thought about if you try to be thorough.
I know how you feel, though (I think). I get the same burnt-out feeling when I see yet another article on git, or piracy, or CSS vs non-CSS, or functional vs. imperative, etc.
Heck, if you think about it, there's a lot of topics where we're mostly just talking past each other. That's kind of my point: people get emotionally entangled with the weirdest stuff. Instead of trying to generically categorize it, I just accept it as a natural part of human interaction. If had a magic list of topics to avoid that would be nice, but unrealistic.
Actually, looking at the thread below, and on the article itself, I can see several replies that are by people who are around that age, where they have that choice, and are hesitating. I can only hope that my article will have helped them in their choice. If it helps even one, imho, the article was worth writing.
Why does a group of people who by and large have already made this decision -- and won't be making it again -- find it so worthwhile to keep debating it? Probably because explaining the choice they made makes them feel better about themselves.