Ben Shapiro or John Oliver? Why?

[JustMyTake]

I pitted these two against each other because I know Ben Shapiro hates John Oliver and I can't imagine John Oliver being a diehard fan of Ben Shapiro (just a hunch.) For people who watch both... which do you prefer. and why?

[GetzRekt]

I can enjoy watching both of them. I knew John Oliver from British television anyway, he was a stand up comedian. He can be funny. Ben Shapiro I like a lot. I like his rapid fire thinking and the way in which he argues his points. He is less comedy and more of a political analyst. John Oliver is an entertainter first and foremost.

[JustMyTake]

@GetzRekt he's very good at arguing his points. However, I don't know if he'd be able to make an overall case like John Oliver does. Yes, he's a lawyer, but his style of arguing involves taking down his opponents as quickly as possible with facts and logic, often employing strawman tactics and traps and hypotheticals. Somehow he seems to get away with stuff that other people aren't able to get away with in debates. For instance, in his debate with Cenk Uygur, he asks Cenk "why not just tax at 100%?" If I was debating somebody on here and used that argument they would accuse me of using an absurd strawman or red herring and slam me for resorting to such cheap tactics. And, in some cases where he debates students at college, he "wins" the debate because he cannot validate the evidence they presented or he hasn't seen it.

[JustMyTake]

@GetzRekt John Oliver doesn't have the same credentials backing his arguments, but he does seem to do a decent job of getting to the bottom of whatever topic he is talking about. I watch him more for the news, logic, and facts now than the comedy. I find his hypotheticals really odd, but not necessarily that funny. His stand up is good. But the analogy format he uses in his show- sometimes it works, sometimes not. Maybe that's just not my kind of humor.

[GetzRekt]

Well it's both fair and honest to refuse to comment on evidence that you have not seen. That's the lawyer in him as much as anything. It would be naive to argue based on feelings rather than facts, it would undermine him entirely.

John Oliver has an entire team of researchers working on his show. He presents the findings and adds the humour. Ben Shapiro, I would imagine, does far more of his own research. I would bet that he is constantly reading and absorbing information from as many sources as possible. Again, having a background in law would be a great asset. Very few people have to retain as much information as lawyers when it comes to case law.

[JustMyTake]

@GetzRekt no doubt he's very intelligent. And, to be fair, I don't know if he brought that point up because it was an iron clad argument or because he was trying to illicit a particular response from Cenk.

His background in law is precisely what makes me wonder. Presenting facts is part of it, but presentation is the other part. And, ultimately, a lawyer's job is to win the case. There could be thousands of potential arguments on any different topic. I doubt Ben Shapiro has thought all of them through, to the point where no matter what argument is brought up he can refute it. But he never pauses or slows down, so he's clearly able to respond to any argument very fast. I see it as a psychological chess game of sorts. He wants to checkmate his opponent as soon as possible, and will strategize accordingly.

[JustMyTake]

@GetzRekt I do have to say though, the whole feelings vs. facts thing- when it comes to the topic of abortion I rarely see Ben use many facts.

[GetzRekt]

His argument on the abortion debate is not a fact based argument, it's a conviction based argument. He has his beliefs and those are what he puts forward. He doesn't try to base it on science.

[JustMyTake]

@GetzRekt Agreed, but he does treat his own beliefs like fact and in some cases does reference science.

[GetzRekt]

I have not seen that. I've seen him stand up for his beliefs when they are beliefs and I've seen him present facts otherwise. That's not to say that he can never be wrong but you won't find him out on the basis of lack of research.

[JustMyTake]

@GetzRekt he did cite a NASA study completely incorrectly. One line said "ice is not melting in this area." The very next line said "overall decrease in ice." He cited the first line, but not the second. I highly doubt he misinterpreted the study that badly- more likely he knew what the study said, but used that particular line because it supported his argument. Climate change and abortion, logic wise, are his weaker areas. He also claimed Mao originated the term political correctness- which is not the case. It originated from an old, old court case. Maybe he never saw that but, as it was a supreme court case, I think it's likely he did. John Oliver, though he doesn't call himself it, is a news source. He tries to be as factual as possible, with a clear bias left. Ben Shapiro is a lawyer, he tries to win arguments. I'm not putting him down- he's very good at what he does. And I do get the sense he feels strongly about abortion.

[GetzRekt]

Maybe you should debate Shapiro and put your case to him, lol.

[JustMyTake]

@GetzRekt He'd wipe the floor with me. You really can't debate a guy who graduated Magna Cum Laude from Harvard unless you also have impressive credentials of that sort. Based on what I've seen, I'm guessing he wouldn't respond directly to that point, but bring up a different study about climate change or a different point or say that he made a mistake but his overall point still stands. And then I would be in uncharted territory.

[Anon-ymous1]

Well Oliver is a comedian by trade, and Shapiro is too... but the difference is, Shapiro doesn't *know* he's a comedian. And Oliver is funnier. So, Oliver.

[Lexicore]

Can't stand Ben Shapiro.

[JustMyTake]

His politics, the way he speaks, who he is as a person, all three?

[Lexicore]

Mostly the first and little bit of the last

[JustMyTake]

@Lexicore yeah, that's fair. He doesn't always seem to display a lot of empathy for others- he's even said "empathy makes for bad politics" but he "gets what empathy is." OK... That said, he does seem to care a lot about his family considering how frequently he talks about them. And when he's talking about a topic like abortion it's clear he is passionate and has strong feelings about it so he's not Sociopathic. Far as I know he's a hardcore conservative. I don't agree with many of his politics, but I think he does a good job explaining why he believes what he believes.

[John_Doesnt]

John Oliver is way better at everything on Late Night.

[JustMyTake]

@John_Doesnt I agree but are you John Oliver? Same name. Longshot though. But you never know.

[John_Doesnt]

yes I am he.

[JustMyTake]

@John_Doesnt I knew it. What's the topic of your next show going to be?

[John_Doesnt]

The next topic is "Jeff Sessions Approves Rape in Keebler Trees".

[JustMyTake]

I'm starting to think you may not be John Oliver after all
Are you Danny Devito?

[John_Doesnt]

Frank Reynolds.

[madhatters4]

i prefer john oliver

[Anonymous]

John Oliver. HE SPEAKS THE TRUTH

SHAPIRO IS A CUCK

[OatsnWhey]

Ben Shiparo...

[JustMyTake]

Why? I like him too but I'm curious

[jacquesvol]

Neither