The use of logical demands—requests for definitions, demands for evidence, requests for clarification—not to advance understanding but to delay, distract, or derail conversation. Logical stalling tactics are what happens when someone asks "define your terms" not because they need definitions but because they want to stop the argument. It's the logic of "what do you mean by 'fair'?" (asked for the tenth time), of "prove that assertion" (after the tenth proof). Logical stalling tactics are beloved of bad-faith arguers who know they can't win but can always delay. The cure is recognizing when stalling is happening and refusing to play—offering definitions once, then moving on; providing evidence once, then demanding engagement.
Example: "Every time she made a point, he demanded a definition, a source, a proof. Not because he needed them—he never engaged with what she provided—but because each demand slowed her down, exhausted her, drained the conversation. Logical stalling tactics had turned dialogue into obstacle course. She eventually stopped trying, which was his goal all along."
by Abzugal Nammugal Enkigal February 17, 2026
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