Technicalpost

A goalpost‑moving tactic that shifts the criteria for acceptable discussion to impossibly technical standards. The perpetrator declares that only those who can engage with highly specialized data, academic papers, or formal models are qualified to speak, thereby excluding the target from the conversation. If the target attempts to meet the technical demand, the standard is raised further—a new field of expertise, a more obscure dataset, a more advanced methodology. Technicalpost effectively weaponizes the very idea of technical competence to silence dissent without engaging its substance.

Example: “She cited a widely respected economist; he said that economist’s work was outdated. She cited newer work; he said it wasn’t peer‑reviewed. When she provided peer‑reviewed papers, he said they didn’t use the right methodology. Technicalpost: moving the goalposts so that no evidence can ever be enough.”

by Abzugal April 1, 2026