Twelve

The countering that Harris refers to is not just about stating what is wrong with a certain text and saying what you think is the right thing. It is more about bringing your own new interpretations to different ideas and moving the ideas forward in different directions. The point is not to end a discussion, but to alter the direction and keep it going. I think the comparison that he made about forwarding and countering was helpful to understanding the two. “Forwarding aligns; countering individuates.” He lists specific ways to get that distance in order to individuate: arguing the other side, uncovering values, and dissenting. Arguing the other side is about showing the negatives of a positive a writer has pointed out, or showing the positives of a negative they have pointed out. Uncovering values involves analyzing and finding ideas that the piece of work does not explain. Dissenting is pointing out a point of agreement in order to note the limits of it. http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2013/02/08/16901421-the-2011-ransom-note-and-the-gops-sequester

This blog provides an example of countering because Maddow uses a tweet from another person and then evaluates the argument that the tweet is making. She does not just say that she disagrees with the tweet, but she analyzes the argument that it makes. She uses the arguing the other side method and states why she disagrees with what the other person thinks is negative and she also uses the method of uncovering values. The tweet is brief, but she looks further into what it is implying and meaning to say. She brings new conversations into the idea by putting her own opinions and inputs about the tweet into the blog. The new ideas that she brings in are keeping the conversation going.