Very true - I've found myself arguing to death with people before realizing we had different goals. I just took it for granted that they wanted "xyz obvious thing that anyone would want" from the situation. And often it's me who overlooked something big and was being dense.
I once spent a half hour discussing (arguing) with a girl on why I am an agnostic. I knew we had different goals, but I thought if I could explain my axioms she would at least concede that my position was consistent.
The discussion went in circles at least three times.
This quote made me smile: "The ability to accept uncertainty requires extraordinary intellectual discipline." But, overall, unfortunately, the article explains why my interests are so shallow. :/
