The earliest bikes - the penny farthing - are as different in their basic design from modern bikes as the earliest cars are to modern cars. But what should be obvious is that getting side-tracked discussing such nonsense is a waste of time. We often hear that the hecklers simply have different policy positions or want to advocate for prudence with taxpayer dollars. In reality, there are some who simply dislike people who have a particular cultural difference and want to see them excluded and subjugated. For them, no amount of reasoning, information, or patience will quell their animosity. You have to be able to tell the difference between people with whom you can engage with in a good faith exchange of ideas, as opposed to those whose "concerns" are simply an expression of contempt for others. For the former, if you address their objections with reasonable, rational explanations or solutions they're satisfied. For the latter, nothing will change their minds and you're simply allowing them to dominate the course of the discussion.
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"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man." - George Bernard Shaw
Don't ask people not to debate a topic. Just stop making debatable assertions. Problem solved.
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