Maybe there's an assumption here that identity has to be constant. If we erase that assumption and accept our identities as a continuous transformation throughout our lives... :
Perhaps keeping your identity flexible can be better at protecting against useless discussion. And the key thing above any consideration of identity is to focus on receive as well as transmit, and to remember to couple the two with some sort of processing. The key point about identity isn't particularly its size, but its flexibility.
A small, inflexible identity is simply a harder target to hit, but when you hit it you'll still find useless discussions there.
A large, flexible identity is easy to hit, but when you hit it, you're very likely to find interesting discussions.
A small, flexible identity is hard to interest, discussions will fizzle uninterestingly long before the religious war, unless you happen to hit the right topic in which case you'll find a good discussion.
A large, inflexible identity is easy to hit and the main cause of pointless discussions.
The best discussions are where flexible identities meet, regardless of their size. A useless discussion is one where the participants come away unchanged. A good discussion is one where the participants come away changed (ie, with something that they didn't have before). You need to be flexible for that.
Of course, there is such a thing as being too flexible...
Perhaps keeping your identity flexible can be better at protecting against useless discussion. And the key thing above any consideration of identity is to focus on receive as well as transmit, and to remember to couple the two with some sort of processing. The key point about identity isn't particularly its size, but its flexibility.
A small, inflexible identity is simply a harder target to hit, but when you hit it you'll still find useless discussions there. A large, flexible identity is easy to hit, but when you hit it, you're very likely to find interesting discussions. A small, flexible identity is hard to interest, discussions will fizzle uninterestingly long before the religious war, unless you happen to hit the right topic in which case you'll find a good discussion. A large, inflexible identity is easy to hit and the main cause of pointless discussions.
The best discussions are where flexible identities meet, regardless of their size. A useless discussion is one where the participants come away unchanged. A good discussion is one where the participants come away changed (ie, with something that they didn't have before). You need to be flexible for that.
Of course, there is such a thing as being too flexible...