'For me to say something (and expect people to accept the truth of what you say - I could be honestly mistaken for example), asking for data is a good thing. It forces me to reflect on why I say what I say and if the "why" is weak, then maybe I need to rethink.'<p>That's basically why I've gotten into the habit of asking for backing material when I read what strikes me as flat assertions with no supportive argument.<p>It's not to turn every casual discussion into an interrogation, but because it helps (as best I've been able to tell) keep the overall quality higher by a) getting people to pause a bit before tossing off casual, overly broad, and often ill-reasoned, comments (e.g. "Perl 6 will never be released"), and b) often gets people to provide links and data.<p>In the best scenarios, that means some of us learn something new.