I'd guess Leibniz ate too much potatoes =)

Half jokingly, we can say that all discussion can be classified in two categories. The first one happens seldom; it starts with people initially somewhat misunderstanding each other, but as the discussion goes on, people gain better understanding and there is some actual exchange of thoughts, feelings and meanings. But far more often it starts with people somewhat misunderstanding each other, then escalating further, until they seem to be completely in different worlds, just trying to win the argument with means of ad hominem arguments, insulting and humiliating each other. (If I can choose, I try to stay with the first category.)